The Last Samurai
by SakuraShannaro08
Summary: It is the late 1800's and the time of the Samurai has ended. However, not everyone is ready to adapt to the modernized Japan. Uchiha Sasuke is a rouge samurai that wanders from village to village as a bounty hunter. Haruno Sakura is a healer training under the great Tsunade. What will happen when Sakura choses to heal such a dangerous man? SasuSaku AU
1. Chapter 1-Honor

Ch. 1

The year was 1877, and it had been a few years since Samurai were ordered to abandon their

precious katanas and way of life for the modernization of Japan. Haruno Sakura watched as her Father's pride was shattered. He had once been the heart of their small village-the Lord of Shikoto village. He had been responsible for ordering the clans into battle and was seen as a hero of their village. Now he and all of the samurai had slowly adapted to the changes in Japan. They took to modern work, becoming merchants, teachers or joined the fast-growing police force. When her mother had finally packed away his beautiful golden bronze armor, his katanas and tanto, although still lord of their village, he became a teacher at the boys school in the center of the village.

One day, after Sakura had brought her father a bento for lunch, she decided to go for a short walk. She sighed remembering her father's conversation with her.

—

She had waited outside the small school building listening for the class to be dismissed for a lunch break. She longed to join the men in class. She had always been extremely curious, and wanted to learn everything she possibly could. Her mother was always scolding her for always having her nose in a book instead of learning how to become a good wife-cooking and cleaning and sewing. She hated it all. The class was dismissed for lunch and Sakura bowed her head as the men left the classroom before entering it and finding her father.

"Father, here is your lunch" she smiled handing it over to him.

"Ah, thank you my little cherry blossom!" her father smiled warmly at her. "Sakura, I have some very important news to discuss with you and your mother when I get home tonight."

"What is it, father?" She asked looking up at his beaming face.

"Uh, uh, uh…I will tell you tonight with your mother. I think you will be really excited!" he said through a mouthful of rice.

"Nn, see you tonight Otou-san." She said sliding open the door and stepping out.

"See you tonight, Sakura." She heard as she closed the door behind her.

— — — — — — — — — —

Sakura had a pretty good idea what the "exciting" news would be and she dreaded it. Her friend Kazumi had gotten the news recently. Her father had finally found someone suitable for an arranged marriage for her. Maybe it was due to all of the books she had read, but she liked to think she would marry someone she loved. What if her husband would be fat, old and wrinkly? What if he was unpleasant and cruel to her?

She decided to keep walking past the village and into the field to find herbs she could use later. Her mentor, Kaede, had been teaching her all about herbs and healing. She had told Sakura's parents that she had a gift when it came to healing and was the best apprentice she has ever had. Sakura loved being able to constantly learn new things, and was a very fast learner.

"Sakura-chan!" She looked up to see Kazumi waving at her, a handful of freshly picked lilies in her other hand. Her long waist-length brown hair swayed in the wind as she ran towards her.

"Hello Kazumi-chan!" Sakura smiled. It had been a while since she saw her friend.

"Guess what? I am getting married in three days!" Kazumi shouted as excitable as always. "Can you believe it?"

"Wow! So what is he like?" Sakura asked.

"Actually, I haven't been able to meet him yet…" Kazumi's hazel eyes were downcast. "But father says that he is a good man and handsome!"

"I see" Sakura said. "I hope it all works out for you and you will be very happy!"

Kazumi's face suddenly saddened. "Sakura-chan, I am leaving the village tomorrow morning. My future husband is the head of the police force in the next town over."

Sakura felt her heart drop. "Oh, Kazumi-chan!" Sakura dropped the herbs she had gathered and grabbed her friend in a hug. "I will miss you so much!" Kazumi started to cry.

"Sakura-chan, promise that we will be able to see each other again!" Sakura's face scrunched up into a painful smile as tears gathered in her eyes. "Of course, Kazumi-chan! I will come visit you myself if I have to, and we can write letters."

The girls finally released each other. "I need to get back to my parents now" Kazumi said. "But please take care, Sakura-chan. I know you will do great things with your healing abilities and I know there is so much more for you than just settling down with a husband like me. I think you will go far in life." Kazumi squeezed Sakura's hand in emphasis before turning to leave.

"Thank you, Kazumi-chan, please write to me!" Sakura waved until her friend was out of sight.

— — — — — — —

Already in a foul mood, Sakura gathered the rest of her herbs and headed back to her family home reluctantly. She hesitated at the front door, not ready to face her upcoming fate yet. She sighed deeply and slid open the door, removed her shoes, announced she was home and headed into the family room. She was surprised to see old Kaede next to a beautiful woman she had never seen before sitting at their family table. She had blonde hair, eyes the color of honey, and a diamond on her forehead. Who was this woman? She did not appear to be from around here. Her parents sat across from them.

"Sakura-chan, come have a seat" her mother patted the seat next to her. Sakura did as she was told and sat next to her mother, folding her legs up underneath her kimono. Her mother poured her a cup of tea.

Kaede smiled her wrinkly smile across the table at her. "Sakura-chan, this is Tsunade-san" Kaede explained. "She is my teacher." Sakura bowed her head politely at the stranger who eyed her curiously. "After talking with your parents, I sent a letter of recommendation about you to her. I think you truly have a healing touch, and you need to be trained by someone with a higher level of skill. You have already easily surpassed me, and with your thirst for knowledge, and your uncanny ability to learn, I think you should study under Tsunade-sensei."

Sakura was amazed and excited. She turned to look at her father and mother who were both smiling at her with pride on their faces.

"Sakura, your mother and I would like to see you become an apprentice of Tsunade-sans. This will require you to leave our village and move to the village of Konoha to study with her. It is about a weeks travel to the village of Konoha. Would you like to do this?"

"Otou-san, Oka-san," she wanted to scream YES, but decided that would be improper. She quickly composed herself and thought out her answer. "I will happily and gratefully accept this position. I hope to bring the Haruno name honor as father has." She bowed deeply. "Thank you, Kaede-sensei, for this great opportunity." She turned to Tsunade. "Tsunade-sensei, I am looking forward to working with you."

Tsunade bowed her head in acknowledgement. "Pack your things because we leave tomorrow at dawn."

— — — — — — — — — —

A/N: Sorry for the slow start, I promise it will get better! I just wanted to establish Sakura's background because I think it is really important for her character development. Please ignore if my Japanese history is a little off, I am not an expert of Samurai history and culture. For a little bit of background on Samurai history, please see this link.

wiki/Samurai

*Katana= long sword

*Tanto= short sword

Thank you for reading!


	2. Chapter 2-Goodbyes

After Kaede and Tsunade left for the night, and Sakura said her tearful goodbyes to her elderly mentor, the Haruno's ate their last meal together as a family.

"To be honest, Otou-san, I thought your announcement was going to be you had arranged a marriage for me" Sakura said giggling. "I never would have guessed you'd have me further my studies."

Her father's eyes widened. "No Sakura, I did not think you were anywhere near ready for marriage…"

Her mother laughed. "She can't even keep from burning rice yet." Sakura blushed. "Okaa-san…"

Her parents laughed at how flustered she was. As sweet as their daughter could be, they also knew she had quite a temper.

"We're really going to miss you, my daughter" her mother said with downcast eyes. "You have brought so much joy to your father and I in the fifteen years you have been with us."

Sakura's eyes swelled up with tears. "I am really going to miss you both, too." She was very excited to go on an adventure, an adventure she had always dreamed of, but she had never left the village before, and she would be away from her parents for the first time in her life.

—-

After helping her mother with the dishes, she went to her room to pack. She folded up two kimonos, one was red with pink cherry blossoms on it, and the other was black with red and white floral patterns. She also packed a lighter yukata that was jade green with pink and white floral patterns on it, and a simple beige traveling cloak. Along with clothes she packed her jasmine scented soap, her healing supplies and some of her rarer herbs, a small sleeping mat, and a blanket. She was just able to fit it all in her large carrying pouch. She figured that anything else she needed could be purchase on the road or in Konoha when she arrived.

When she was finally finished packing, she slid open her door to the courtyard of their estate overlooking a koi fish pond and sat watching the elegant fish swim in the moonlight, dipping her feet into the cool water. It was a nice warm night, and she relaxed to the sounds of chirping crickets and the wind in the trees. She heard the door slide open behind her and soft footsteps as her mother sat down to join her.

"You know, I still cannot believe how beautiful your hair is" her mother said running a hand through her long pink hair. "I was shocked when you were first born and had such pink hair, just like the cherry blossoms that were blooming at the time."

Sakura smiled at her mother and into the same green eyes that mirrored her own. "Where does this pink hair come from? Neither you or dad have this hair." She had never seen anyone with pink hair before aside from her in fact.

"Your grandmother, apparently" her mother replied. "Your father was so happy to see you had the same pink hair that his mother once had." Sakura nodded. Her father often told her how much she reminded him of his mother. "With hair that stands out as much as yours does, please be careful during your travels," her mother said with worry in her eyes. "It can make you an easy target."

"I will, Okaa-san" Sakura said leaning into her mother's side. "I will."

—

After a restless night for Sakura, all too soon Tsunade was at their door to pick her up. After saying goodbye to her parents they headed through the foggy streets of the village as the sun began to rise. As they walked, Sakura noticed a carriage waiting in front of Kazumi's family home. She caught a glimpse of long hair.

"Kazumi-chan!" she called out. Her friend turned around and beamed. "Sakura-chan!" Kazumi ran to her side and embraced her. "Sakura-chan, are you leaving the village, too?" she beamed. "Yeah, I am heading to Konoha village to study healing under Tsunade-sensei's guidance!" "Ah, that's so far away! But I hope everything goes well for you!"

"Goodbye, Kazumi-chan and safe travels!" Sakura called after her as she returned to the carriage. "You, too Sakura-chan!"

"A friend of yours?" Tsunade asked with her eyes on Kazumi talking with her parents. "Yeah, we have been friends for as long as I can remember" Sakura said with sadness in her eyes. "I will miss her, but she's leaving to be married." Tsunade nodded in understanding. The carriage rocked as the horses started to pull and Sakura could see her friend's hand waving through the small window on the side. She grinned and waved until she could no longer see the carriage. Along with goodbyes from her parents, Kaede and Kazumi, many of the villagers thanked Sakura for her hard work in the village and wished her well. She felt truly touched.

When her and Tsunade reached the front gate, she saw two men waiting at the entrance for them. One had spiky blonde hair and appeared to be around her age, and the other was older with long white hair. His boisterous laugh echoed through the quiet village.

"Jiraya, you idiot" Tsunade said with a growl. "Do you want to wake the whole damn village?"

The white haired man laughed again. "Sorry Tsunade, but I just had to point out the beautiful girl you have with you to Naruto" The blonde boy's face reddened and he stuttered out. "E-Ero Sennin!" Sakura blushed at the attention on her. "Not that you aren't a beauty yourself, Tsunade." Jiraya winked at her.

Tsunade sighed and turned to Sakura. "Sakura, these two idiots will be our bodyguards on the road. Normally I wouldn't feel the need for them, but there have been a lot of trouble on the roads lately and it's better safe than sorry." Sakura, Naruto and Jiraya all introduced themselves. Sakura learned that Jiraya was Naruto's sensei and was learning to become stronger although at what she was not yet sure. As they walked through the forest, she noticed that they wore some interesting clothing, though. She was particularly curious about the headband that Naruto wore.

"Neh, Uzumaki-kun? What does the symbol on your headband mean?"

Naruto smiled a huge grin and slowed his pace to be even with hers. "Please call me Naruto, Sakura-chan! No need to be so formal. We'll be traveling together for quite some time."

Sakura nodded. "Naruto…san" Naruto laughed and grabbed his headband. "As for my forehead protector, this means that I am a ninja of Konoha village!"

"A ninja?" Sakura asked surprised. "We're all ninja, actually. Even old Tsunade!" Naruto replied and yelped as Tsunade walloped him on the head. Sakura turned to Tsunade. "Is that true?"

Tsunade nodded. "Kaede was a ninja, too."

"Eh? Kaede was?!" Sakura asked.

"Yes, she was a healer-nin, like me."

"Had a mean kick though!" Jiraya added.

"She actually recommended you to me because she thought that you had the potential to become a great ninja with your intelligence and healing abilities. She feared that your talents would go to waste."

"What exactly does a nin—" Sakura was suddenly cut off when they heard a loud crash and screaming in the forest ahead of them.

"Jiraya, let's go!" Tsunade said turning suddenly serious. "Naruto, you stay with Sakura!" Sakura was amazed when the two suddenly disappeared into the trees in a flash of speed.

"Aww man, I want to fight—dattebayo!" Naruto said disappointedly. "It's been days since I've seen any action!"

Sakura was frightened, but did not want to show it. All she could do was listen to the shouting, weapons clashing and felt a tremble in the earth accompanied by a loud boom.

"What was that?!" Sakura asked.

"Granny Tsunade is going all out!" Naruto said. "I hope the old farts will be okay!" Naruto turned to her and for the first time, he looked serious. "Let's go Sakura-chan. Get on my back!" He bent over and waited for her to climb up.

"I um…wait, what?" She asked bewildered. That was completely improper in her kimono.

"C'mon!" Naruto yelled as he scooped her up into his arms. She gasped and wrapped her arms around his neck in fear of falling as he carried her through the trees at amazing speed. Naruto grinned sheepishly realizing that her arms were tight around him. "Don't think anything of this" Sakura said glaring up at him with venom in her voice. "Heh, Heh, Heh…never, Sakura-chan!"

Sakura could hear the fight getting closer and closer until they could see the small clearing from the branch Naruto stopped on. Her blood turned to ice in her veins when she saw the horseless and turned-over carriage.

"Kazumi-chan!" Sakura screamed in panic as she wiggled her way out of Naruto's arms and onto the thick branch.

"Sakura-chan, wait! It's not safe for you!" Naruto said grabbing onto her wrist. "The attackers are probably still here!"

"I don't care!" She shouted with rage. "What if someone needs healing? What if Kazumi-chan needs me?"

Naruto sighed and he furrowed his eyebrows. "Alright, just stay here and let me check it out first. I will come back to get you when I know it is safe and you can heal anyone that needs help."

Sakura reluctantly nodded. As much as she wanted to find her friend, she agreed with his logic. It would not help him to have her distract him in the fight. She impatiently awaited his return. She was, for the first time in her life, frustrated with herself for not being stronger.

After what felt like forever, she saw Naruto, Jiraya and Tsunade reappear in the clearing under her. Tsunade looked exhausted and had an arm around Jiraya's shoulder to keep her up and Naruto's face was grim as he turned his face up to look at her. Sakura felt her heart clench tighter as Naruto jumped up to the branch she was perched on and brought her down to the other ninja.

"What happened?" Sakura asked afraid of the answer. Naruto avoided her eyes. After a pregnant pause, Tsunade finally broke the silence."Bandits." Sakura grabbed her kimono over her heart. "We found five dead men…and one dying woman." Sakura looked into the woman's eyes and saw pain written in them. "It was your friend, Sakura. I'm sorry. There was nothing we could have done for her."

Sakura dropped to her knees. She felt numb. _Kazumi-chan_... "Ca-can you ta-take me to her?" It wouldn't be real unless she saw her for herself. Naruto offered her a hand to help her up and she took it. "I will take you to her, Sakura-chan." He looked into her eyes with concern. "But I must warn you, it's pretty gruesome." Sakura nodded in understanding.

"Thank you, Na-Naruto."


	3. Chapter 3- The Samurai

Hello readers! I must warn you in advance that this chapter contains some moderately **graphic content** in it. It's rated **M** for a reason. Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoy "The Last Samurai"!

Ch. 3

Naruto walked Sakura toward the disheveled carriage with Tsunade and Jiraya close behind them. They walked past a corpse that had five arrows in his chest and a face frozen in a scream of agony. Sakura paled. She could see more corpses in the distance. Tsunade grabbed Sakura's shoulder gently.

"Sakura, this is not going to be easy for you. You're not going to like what you'll find" the grip on her shoulder tightened. "Prepare yourself." Sakura nodded and took a deep breath. She saw Tsunade and Jiraya share a look and Tsunade nodded at him. Sakura was surprised to see she had recovered so fast considering she could barely walk a few minutes prior.

"Naruto, let's bury these men." Jiraya said turning to him. Naruto gave Sakura a sympathetic look. "I will go with her, Naruto." Tsunade said. He nodded grimly before joining Jiraya in digging graves for the dead.

"She's in here, Sakura." Tsunade said gravely as she pulled the curtain of the tipped-over carriage aside. Sakura followed her into the small carriage and instantly froze in horror. Kazumi was laying on her back with her kimono ripped to shreds, the expensive silk laying in pieces around her body. Her arms were covered in purple bruises and her lips were swollen and bleeding. Someone had tried to protect her modesty with a small blanket, but she could see bite marks on the exposed skin of her neck and breasts and blood pooled between her legs. She had bled to death. Sakura couldn't breathe.

Her widened eyes filled with tears as she dropped down next to her friend's body. Sakura reached out a shaking hand and placed it on Kazumi's pretty face, brushing her bangs back. Her skin was cold to the touch. She would never get to hear another of her fun stories, she would never receive the letter she was promised from her, she would never know if the husband she had been so excited about was actually handsome. Sakura felt the tears fall openly down her face and realized that she was sobbing.

Sakura grabbed her friend's cold hands in hers. "I am so sorry this happened to you, Kazumi-chan" Sakura whispered in between sobs. "If-if I were here, if I were stronger…this never would have happened to you. I'm so sorry!"

Tsunade waited patiently as Sakura grieved. She knew the pain of losing a loved one all too well, especially when they died in such a gruesome way. Once Sakura had exhausted her tears and sat staring at her friend's face in silence, Tsunade sat beside her.

"I know that what happened to her is absolutely horrible and unforgivable, but there was nothing you could have done for her. When I found her, I covered her in a blanket and held her hand as she passed on. She wasn't alone." Tsunade said wrapping an arm around Sakura's shoulder. "I know it's hard, but we have to keep moving. Let's give her a proper burial and say goodbye." Sakura nodded the slightest nod before rising to stand. "Thank you, Shishou."

Sakura and Tsunade washed Kazumi's body and dressed her in Sakura's black kimono. The men had dug a grave for her under a beautiful maple tree. She was laid to rest next to the five men that had died trying to protect her. Sakura gathered up stones and laid them over the grave and carved her name into one of them. She also gathered some wild flowers and laid them over all of the graves. The three Konoha ninja prayed for the dead to rest in peace and gave Sakura some privacy to say her final goodbye to her friend.

"Kazumi-chan, I promise you, here at your grave, that I will get stronger. I will never let this happen to another one of my loved ones ever again. I will train and no matter what, I will never stop fighting. Once I become strong enough, I will avenge you. When it's all over, I will return to your grave and visit. Until then, I cannot forgive myself for being useless and letting this happen to you. I'm sorry. I will miss you each and every day, my friend."

After writing a letter to Kazumi's parents and sending it with one of Jiraya's toads back to the village of Shikoto, the four companions walked on in silence for hours. They finally stopped when the sun set and set up camp for the night. If Sakura were her usual perky and curious self, she would have been amazed to see twelve obnoxious Narutos appear and run through the forest gathering firewood. She would have been asking a million questions about how Jiraya was able to light the fire with his breath. Instead she sat against a large tree staring off into the dark forest, seeing nothing. She was physically and emotionally drained. Naruto dropped down next to her with two bowls of something. Sakura looked down. Ramen?

"Here, Sakura-chan!" Naruto said with his usual toothy grin. "You should eat something, it's been a long time since breakfast this morning."

"Thanks, Naruto." Sakura said quietly as she grabbed the bowl he extended to her.

"I love ramen!" Naruto said happily as he slurped his noodles loudly. "When we get back to Konoha, I am taking you to my favorite place in the village, Ichiraku ramen!" Sakura had to admit, the idiot's enthusiasm was contagious. She smiled a small smile at him before taking a small bite of her meal. He proceeded to list, in detail, the entire Ichiraku menu.

"…the soy ramen is really good, but I think my favorite has to be the miso ramen!" Sakura was surprised she wasn't annoyed by his babbling. She was actually happy to have a distraction from her own thoughts. "I look forward to trying it, Naurto, if you're this enthusiastic about it." Naruto smiled a sly smile. "It's a date!"

"Eh?" Sakura asked glaring daggers. "When did I say I'd go on a date with you, baka?" Naruto laughed and leaned into her. She had had enough. She grabbed his empty bowl and sent him flying with a punch to the face. He landed between Tsunade and Jiraya who both gawked at the girl. "Shannaro!"

After doing the dishes, everyone grabbed out their sleeping mats and blankets and laid around the fire. Naruto had tried to get a spot next to Sakura, but refrained after she threatened to punch him to the moon if he tried anything again. Sakura and Tsunade had sleeping mats next to each other on one side of the fire, and Jiraya and Naruto were on the other side (much to the men's disappointment). Sakura was so exhausted, she nearly fell asleep as soon as she laid on her mat. She openly welcomed the bliss of sleep.

When Tsunade woke her for her turn for watch, it was right before sunrise. She felt groggy and disgusting. Sakura decided to get up because she was falling back asleep sitting on her mat, listening to her sleeping companions slow and even breathing. She walked to the river that was near enough to camp that she could still hear Jiraya's snoring through the trees. She squatted down on the bank of the calm, slow-moving river and looked at her reflexion. Her long pink hair had fallen out of its usual neat clip that she tied it up in and her eyes were puffy and red. Not to mention the bags under her eyes.

"Yikes" Sakura whispered to herself as she cupped some cool water into her hands and brought it up to wash her face. She sighed in content as it soothed her tired eyes. She watched as the ripples she created grew smaller and smaller until she could see her clear reflection again..and the reflexion of someone behind her. She gasped as she suddenly felt a cool blade at her throat.

"Name yourself" a low male voice demanded. As frightened as Sakura was, she couldn't help but notice he had a voice like velvet.

"Ha-Haruno Sakura" she squeaked out and sat completely still with the blade still against her neck.

"What is your purpose with Konoha ninja?" the velvety-smooth voice asked slightly running the blade against her skin. She yelped as the sharp blade nicked her skin.

"I travel w-with them to return to their village to study medicine and improve m-my healing abilities." Apparently that was an acceptable answer because the cool metal at her throat was suddenly gone and she heard the weapon being sheathed. She sighed in relief and turned around to look at the man and put a face with the smooth voice, but all she could see was his back as he walked away from her. She could see that he was a tall man with dark hair. He wore a dark blue kimono top and light grey hakama pants. He had two swords at his hip and a red and white crest in the shape of a fan on his back.

"Wait," Sakura called after him. He paused."You're a samurai, aren't you? I didn't know there were any left. My father was one. I thought that the government outlawed samurai and the use of swords? Are you one of the few samurai that refuse to convert to the new ways? You can get into a lot of trouble that way-"

In the fraction of a second it took for her to blink, a pair of obsidian eyes were suddenly inches from hers glaring down at her and a large calloused hand covered her mouth.

"You're annoying."

Before she could even react to the man in front of her, she felt a hit to the back of her head and all went black as strong arms caught her.

When Sakura awoke, she was on her sleeping mat in camp next to Tsunade. She could still hear Jiraya snoring and could hear Naruto mumbling in his sleep about ramen. She rubbed her eyes and sat up slowly. What happened? Had she dreamed of that man? Was he real? Did that really just happen? She winced when there was a sharp pain on the back of her head when she sat up too fast. That's right, he had knocked her out. What an asshole…not only had he called her annoying, he knocked her out cold! That is…if he was even real…she thought back to those dark eyes and handsome face. The sun was rising and one by one her companions woke up around her.

Naruto yawned loudly and stretched his arms above his head. "Ahhhh…good morning, Sakura-chan!"

"Sakura, what happened to your neck? You're bleeding." Tsunade asked. Sakura reached a hand up to touch the small wound and winced as she ran a finger across the shallow, even cut.

"Ah…it was dark and I stumbled and cut it on a thorn bush when I went to the river this morning" Sakura lied. "I didn't realize it was bleeding." Tsunade cocked an eyebrow at her but didn't question her any further. "Be more careful next time. Come here, I'll heal it for you."

Sakura was amazed when she saw Tsunade light up her right hand with green light. Within a few seconds, the pain from the small cut completely vanished. When she felt for the cut, all that was left was smooth skin. "Can you teach me how to do that?" Sakura asked excitedly. Tsunade smiled and nodded. "That's the reason Kaede suggested I take you under my wing. But first, you must learn the basics…"

As they continued their travels, Sakura learned about chakra and how to control it. The three ninja also took turns explaining taijutsu, ninjutsu, genjutsu and kekkei genkai to her. Tsunade and Jiraya taught her some basic chakra control drills which she worked on whenever they stopped to rest.

As they waited for their rice to cook for lunch, Sakura went a ways into the woods away from the ninja to concentrate on her chakra control. She found a spot in the sun on a large flat rock and sat to meditate. She closed her eyes, took deep breaths in and out and listened to the sounds of the birds and the wind in the trees. She focused on the energy she could feel in her body. It started in her heart, and flowed through to her arms, her legs, her head. She concentrated on pushing as much chakra as she could to her right hand. Then her left. She continued this process over and over until Jiraya broke her concentration by lightly touching her arm and telling her lunch was ready.

The ninja were impressed by how quickly Sakura was able to learn to control her chakra so well in less than a week's worth of time. Naruto was jealous when Sakura was able to climb to the top branch of a tall tree after only fifteen minutes of trying to climb it with just her feet. She was thankful for the grey romper Tsunade had leant her because her kimono just didn't allow her enough movement. She was not used to having her legs so exposed, but she enjoyed the freedom of wearing shorts. She had the grey romper tied up with her maroon obi from her kimono.

"It took Naruto a week to be able to do that when Kakashi taught him" Jiraya said, truly impressed with Sakura's progression. "You were able to do it in less than an hour." Naruto glared and muttered under his breath. Sakura giggled and went to join Tsunade who was calling for her.

"Watch out, Naruto" Jiraya laughed. "That girl is going to make one fierce kunoichi. I'm sure she will take after her master in not only strength, but beauty…and not to mention that temper. Just like Tsunade." Jiraya and Naruto shared a frightened look as they watched the two women looking at a scroll together. "Remind me to act more mature around Sakura-chan as she becomes stronger. I don't want to be punched to the moon." Jiraya laughed heartily. "Hey, I should use that in my new novel…"

That night, Sakura dreamed of the dark-haired samurai. He was lurking in the shadows of the forest.

"Wait!" Sakura called, running after him. She chased him through the dark forest until she came across the same river where she first saw him. All she could see was the red and white fan on his dark back, forever burned into her memory.

"Wait" she panted coming up behind him. "What is your name? I never got a change to ask you…"

When he turned around, he was no longer the mysterious samurai, but a girl with long brown hair wearing a kimono soaked in blood. "Sakura-chan. Why did you let me die? Why didn't you save me? I was supposed to be married today!" Kazumi let out a blood-curdling scream and fell to the ground in a heap.

"NOO! I'm sorry, Kazumi! I'm so sorry!" When Sakura reached down to grab her friend, she lifted up a corpse. Her eyes were completely sunken in and her teeth were exposed under the rotting flesh of her once pretty face. Sakura screamed. She woke with a start and felt tears trailing down her face. She wrapped her arms around herself and tried to catch her breath.

"Are you, alright, Sakura?" Tsunade asked. It was currently her turn for watch.

"Yeah, I just had a nightmare" Sakura admitted wiping at her eyes. "I'm awake now and not likely to fall back asleep anytime soon, so why don't you get some sleep. I'll keep watch."

Tsunade nodded. "Thanks, goodnight." Sakura was thankful that the older woman didn't try to make her talk about it. She dried her tears and tried to stop shaking.

Once Tsunade was asleep, Sakura gathered up the bag of ninja tools Naruto had given her. The past few days he had been teaching her how to throw kunai, and she wanted to practice to get her mind off of her nightmare. She walked a short distance away from the camp that was close enough to see her sleeping companions in the glow of their campfire. Sakura selected a tree that was lit by moonlight as a target. She tied her hair up in a high ponytail and pulled back the sleeves of her romper. Sakura started only a few feet away from the tree and slowly backed up a few feet every time she hit the target. On her tenth throw, now twenty feet away from her target, she was confused when she didn't hear the familiar thunk of metal hitting the tree. Had she missed? She could have sworn she was going to hit the—

"Haruno Sakura" a familiar deep voice spoke from the darkness in front of her. Sakura's breath caught in her throat.

"Samurai" Sakura said with sass after quickly composing herself. "You know, I would like to be able to address you by your actual name, but I'm afraid our time was cut short last I saw you…I never got the chance to ask—"

"Uchiha…Sasuke" he interrupted.

"Well, Uchiha-san, I did not appreciate being knocked out by you the other morning." Sakura said laying her hands on her hips.

"Tch. You wouldn't shut up" Sasuke said cooly. "It would have woken your companions."

"Why does that matter, are they your enemy?" She challenged.

"Hn" Sasuke said. "Not necessarily. At least, not now."

"Then why are you here?" Sakura asked to which she got no reply. "Why don't you come out of the shadows and have a proper conversation with me?" Sakura asked in an angry whisper. "It's kind of creepy talking to a man hiding in the shadows…"

After a moment of silence, he replied "I am looking for a group of bandits that call themselves the Sekiko." He had completely ignored her wish for him to come out of the shadows although she was aware that his voice was coming from behind her now. She turned towards the sound of his voice.

"They are rumored to have been involved in the rape and murder of a young woman that was engaged to the head of the police force in Hinode village. The police force recently found their hideout and were able to arrest many of the that escaped have a large bounty on their heads."

Sakura shut her eyes tight as tears formed in the corners of her eyes thinking back to how she had found her friend's defiled body. "The woman was my childhood friend, Kazumi-chan. We found her body and the bodies of her escorts and buried them all." Sakura's fist clenched. "I want to make those bastards pay for what they did to her." She growled. "I know as I am now, I am weak but I made her a promise of revenge at her grave before I left." Sakura was surprised with the amount of venom in her voice when she spoke about those men. She had been so angry when the ninja told her they had gotten away that horrible day.

"I'm sorry that happened to your friend." Sasuke said quietly. "I know how revenge can haunt you. Eat away at you until it completely consumes you. I have my own revenge to satisfy one day."

"So you're a bounty hunter?" Sakura asked.

"…Something like that."

Sakura jumped when the kunai she had been searching for landed in the ground an inch in front of her left foot. It suddenly dawned on her that he must have caught it earlier when she had thrown it. "I promise on this kunai, I will get your revenge for you. Those men will pay for their sins with their blood. No need for you to stain your hands. I already have plenty of blood on mine, what's a little more."

Sakura shivered as she heard him walking away. "Uchiha-san?"

"Hn?"

"I don't know why you care enough to make me this promise, but thank you."

"Hn. So annoying."


	4. Chapter 4- A forbidden love!

Ch. 4

"Only a few more hours and we'll be back at the village!" Naruto announced boisterously as he ran ahead of everyone. "I can't wait to get some ramen!"

"How does he have that much energy?" Sakura asked flatly to the older ninja walking at her side. She was exhausted.

"He has unbelievable stamina, and an excessive amount of chakra." Jiraya answered with a proud smirk on his face. "He is going to be an unbelievably powerful ninja one day."

"If he ever matures…" Tsunade said shaking her head with a small smile gracing her beautiful face.

Sakura watched the boy hop from tree branch to tree branch easily like they hadn't been traveling for a week straight. She had to admit she was impressed with the obnoxious idiot.

"How am I ever going to catch up to him?" Sakura asked sighing.

Tsunade turned to look at her. "Sakura, you have already showed tremendous growth in the short week that you have been with us. You'll catch up sooner than you think, especially with me as your master." Sakura smiled up at her mentor. "However, don't expect me to go easy on you. Everyday will be painful. You will sweat, you will bleed and you will be tired. You are my apprentice now, and as such I expect a lot from you." Sakura's smile vanished and was replaced with a look of seriousness.

"I will train with all that I have, master" Sakura said tightening her right hand into a fist. "I want to become strong, and bring my family honor."

Tsunade had to admit that she liked the look in her young apprentice's eyes. She reminded her of herself at the age of fifteen. Stubborn, driven and had an unquenchable thirst for knowledge. Sakura ran ahead yelling to Naruto to slow down and walk with them.

Jiraya laughed as they watched Sakura bop Naruto on the head for frightening her as he dropped down beside her. "She is so much like you, Tsuande." Tsunade couldn't help but laugh with him. "And Naruto is just like you."

Jiraya smiled a toothy smile. "We found some amazing apprentices, didn't we?"

"Ah" Tsunade said as the pair watched the young boy and girl laughing and talking ahead of them. "And I won't be surprised if they surpass us both one day."

As the sun was setting, the group arrived at the gates of Konoha. The ninja guarding the gate welcomed Tsunade, Jiraya and Naruto back to the village and Tsunade explained that Sakura was her new apprentice.

"Best of luck to you, miss. I hear she's a brutal teacher!" One of the ninja called from behind them as they walked. Tsunade rolled her eyes. "As can be expected from the previous Hokage!"

"What's the Hokage?" Sakura asked looking at Tsunade in wonder.

"EEEHHHHHH?!" Naruto said jumping in front of Sakura and grabbing her arms. "The Hokage is the leader of the village! They are the most powerful and awesome! They take care of the entire village like their own family!" Sakura had to admit that the amount of respect she had for Tsunade grew ever larger the more she learned about the woman.

Sakura glared at Naruto as he shook her arms in his excitement. "Okay, okay. I get it!" He released his hold on her arms and smiled at her, pointing a thumb into the fabric of his chest. "I am going to be the next Hokage, dattebayo!"

"Not if you don't stop goofing around and neglecting your training." Jiraya said putting a large hand on the boy's spiky hair and ruffling it. "You and I leave for training in three days time."

"How long will you be away this time?" Tsunade asked. Sakura felt her heart sink when she realized that her only friend in the village would be leaving.

"Two years." Jiraya said. "I already talked to Kakashi about it." Tsunade nodded.

"Two _years_ , Ero-Sennin?" Naruto asked. "But I only just met Sakura-chan! I want to get to know her bett—."

"—And what do you think Sakura will be doing for the next two _years_?" Tsunade interrupted irritably. "She won't have the time to slack off either. She has two years to catch up, so by the time you return, you can be on a team together."

"AHHH! Hear that, Sakura-chan? We're going to be on the same team!" Naruto said happily. Sakura was happy, too. As obnoxious as Naruto was, she couldn't help but feel fondness for him.

She smiled warmly at him. "I hope I can catch up to you, Naruto!"

"I know you can, Sakura-chan! I can't wait to be teammates! We'll get to train together and go on missions!"

"Thanks, Naruto. I look forward to it, too."

After Naruto made Sakura promise to get ramen with him the next day, they all had said their goodnights and Tsunade led her to her home. Sakura noticed that there were two buildings next to each other that were connected by wooden walkways. She also noticed a large herb garden and was eager to see what was growing in it.

"This is where I hold my healing practices" Tsunade said pointing at the small building as they passed it. "And this is where I live." She said unlocking the front door and sliding it open. Tsunade lit the light just inside the door and locked the door behind them. Sakura was surprised at how spacious the house was. It was simply decorated with a few feminine touches like a beautiful fan with graceful cranes painted on it that hung on the wall, and a few vases of flowers on tables.

Sakura heard shuffling and looked up to see a woman with dark hair coming out of a back room with a lantern. "Welcome home, Tsunade-sama."

"Ah, Shizune. This is Haruno Sakura." Sakura and Shizune exchanged bows. "Can you please show her to her room?" Tsunade asked grabbing a bottle of sake off of the living room table and heading towards what Sakura guessed was her bedroom. "Hai, right this way."

Shizune led Sakura up a flight of narrow stairs and slid open the first door on her left. "This is your room." Shizune lit the lamp on the small table. The room was small and plain, but Sakura noticed a beautifully painted scroll of a cherry blossom tree hanging on the wall and red cushions under the small table. "Sorry if it is a bit dusty. It has been a while since we've had anyone stay with us. I cleaned it before you came of course, though! There is fresh bedding and a futon in the closet." Sakura thanked her. "I will let you know when the bath is ready, I'm sure Tsunade-sama is in there now."

Sakura laid out her futon and unpacked her bag. She hung up her clothes, and neatly organized her healing supplies and herbs on the table she sat at. When Shizune came to get her, she gathered her jasmine scented soap and fresh clothes and went downstairs to the bath. Sakura washed herself off before climbing into the deep tub. She was so thankful to be clean after a weeks worth of traveling.

Sakura reflected on everything that had happened in a week. She thought of Kazumi, and how she was training to be a ninja. She wondered how her parents were doing and decided she would write them a letter after her bath. She scooped handfuls of water into her palms and watched as the water escaped through her fingers.

Her mind wandered again to the mysterious man in the woods. She couldn't help but hope that their paths would cross again one day. Flashes of obsidian eyes, dark hair and the red and white fan on his back flashed through her mind. She never did get a good look at his face, he had been moving too fast. Sakura couldn't understand why she had such a strong desire to see him again. He seemed like a very dangerous man to get involved with and could be a criminal for all she knew.

"Uchiha…Sasuke…" she whispered to herself.

She wondered if he would follow through with his promise to her if he hadn't already. She couldn't help but wish she could be with him to carry out that promise and help get her revenge on the men who murdered her best friend. In order for that though, she knew she had to get stronger and take her training very seriously.

After her bath, Sakura changed into the plain white robe Shizune had provided for her and made her way back to her bedroom. There she found the ink and parchment she had asked for at her small table. She gathered the lantern close as she sat down to write.

 _Dear Mom and Dad,_

 _I have made it to Konoha safe and sound and am staying with Tsunade. It was a very long journey, but I have met some very nice people so far. There is a boy my age named Naruto who is very funny and energetic! Tsunade promises that there are other teenagers my age that live here as well. I hope I make a lot of friends! There weren't many people my age in our village._

She paused trying to think of the best way to bring up the next subject.

 _I am sure you have heard by now, but my companions and I found Kazumi who was murdered by bandits. I am still in shock and grieving, but I am trying my best to cope. I hope her family is doing alright and that they can find her grave easily. Please offer them my condolences. She did not deserve what happened to her. She was one of the sweetest people I have ever known. Please leave her some flowers from me too if you visit her grave._

 _I am going to be training really hard for the next two years, Tsunade says. So far I have learned about chakra control and am going to be learning how I can heal with chakra! Isn't that amazing?_

 _I miss you both so much and I hope you are doing well!_

 _Love,_

 _Sakura_

The wind whistled in his ears as he swiftly and silently jumped through the dark forest. He was utterly disgusted with himself. Why should he care about some annoying little girl? He was currently heading in the exact opposite direction he should be traveling in and knew it was much too risky to be heading into a ninja village. For some very foolish reason, he just had to know that Haruno Sakura was safe. He didn't understand himself or why he was doing this, yet there he was scaling up the high walls of Konoha village. It had been years since he had attempted anything this moronic.

He slinked past the guards effortlessly and felt for her unique energy. Soundlessly, he leapt from tree to tree and building to building like an owl hunting for it's prey in the night. He 'tsked' impatiently searching for her through the masses of ninja that lived there. Finally, he was able to focus in on her soothing chakra in a house near the wall he had snuck in from. He moved towards the house on impulse. He was surprised when he found that feeling her alive wasn't enough, he wanted to actually see her to verify that she was safe.

He landed on the branch of a large maple tree next to the home and peered inside the open window of the top room. He could see the pink-haired girl asleep at a small table with her head cradled between her arms. In the flickering of the lantern that was burning low, he could see traces of tears on her cheeks and a letter she must have just finished writing next to her. He thought of his bizarre and impulsive promise to her. What was he thinking? Uchiha Sasuke did not make promises unless it was the promise of taking your life. He glared at the sleeping girl. Why was she any different?

He tried to ignore her long, pretty lashes that were splayed against her cheeks, her slightly open pink lips and her long pink hair that draped down to the small of her back. She looked so peaceful and innocent. That's when it suddenly made sense to him. He wanted to protect her because he wanted her to keep that innocence. She looked so very fragile, like a porcelain doll. He wanted to help her seek her revenge so she wouldn't fall into madness like he once had. He didn't want to see the light in her green eyes, so full of life, fade to nothing.

Most of all, he was worried that her pink hair would make her a target. He had seen it a lot in his travels. Pretty girls plucked from their homes- brutally raped, beaten or murdered. Girls stolen from their families and sold like cattle at a market into a life of satisfying men's pleasures. It made him sick. He had been given jobs taking down kidnappers and slave traders, and when it came to ending the life of those bastards, he never felt any remorse. Sasuke tried to shake his negative memories away. She was _here_ , _safe,_ and in a village full of trained _ninja_. It couldn't get much safer than that.

Tentatively, after seeing Sakura shiver, Sasuke made his way in through the window, blew out the lantern and wrapped a blanket around her shoulders. He saw her smile contently as she unconsciously snuggled into the blanket. He couldn't help but smirk at the annoying girl as he quietly closed the window down to a crack behind him as he left.

"Great, now I'm going soft." He whispered to himself and sighed. He made his way back over the wall and back into the darkness of the forest beyond.

Little did he know he had been watched.

Jiraya had witnessed the scene from his position on a nearby roof with suspicion at first when he had felt the dark man's chakra enter the village, but when no harm had seem to come and he saw the man cover Sakura in a blanket and leave, the scene left him feeling quite inspired. He giggled gleefully as he wrote down everything he had just witnessed. A dark brooding samurai, an innocent young woman…sneaking into her bedroom. His nose started to bleed.

"A forbidden love!" Jiraya shouted out in his excitement. "Ohhh the possibilities!" He ignored all of the cursing ninja yelling at him to shut up. He hadn't been this fired up for writing in a long time.

This was going to be his greatest story yet!

Sorry it's such a short chapter but I was traveling all last week. However, I'm almost done with chapter 5! Hope to have it up by the end of this week. :) 'Till then! Thank you for reading!


	5. Chapter 5- Konoha

Ch. 5

Sakura woke to the chirping of birds and a streak of sunlight sneaking into her room through the crack of the open window. She stretched her sore muscles with a groan. She thought of all the times her mother had scolded her for falling asleep at her desk, usually with her head in a book. _'You'll ruin your back if you keep falling asleep like that!'_ her mother had constantly nagged at her.

She had been surprised to wake up wrapped in the warmth of her blanket. Someone had covered her up during the night. Last she could remember, she had been crying because she missed her parents and everyone back home in her village.

There was a knock on her door.

"Good morning, Sakura-san" Shizune's said "Breakfast is ready downstairs, come join us when you are ready."

Sakura thanked Shizune, dressed and put most of her hair up in a bun leaving the front of her hair down to frame her face. When she joined them at the dining room table, they ate breakfast as Tsunade explained that for the day Sakura would be shadowing her and observing what she does. After breakfast, Sakura joined Shizune in the kitchen to help her with dishes, happy for an excuse to get away from Tsunade's cranky hungover mood.

"By the way, Shizune-san, thank you for covering me with a blanket last night, I know it was cold."

"Eh?" Shizune said giving her a puzzled expression as she dried dishes. "That wasn't me, and I highly doubt it was Tsunade considering she was passed out drunk last night…highly doubt she could have made it up the stairs."

"Oh…" Sakura replied confused. Maybe she had covered herself up? She certainly didn't remember doing so though. She decided to shrug it off for now, although it didn't lessen her confusion. "Guess I must have grabbed it before I fell asleep…" she finished lamely and embarrassed. Shizune smirked. "Maybe it was a spirit."

Sakura spent her morning learning about some herbs that could help with stomach aches and another that could act against certain types of poisons. She was fascinated. She spent the rest of her day helping Tsunade see patient after patient. There were all types of people from a very pregnant middle aged woman to an elderly man with very shaky hands to a young woman her own age. She was coughing up blood and had many bruises on her pale skin.

"Training with Neji again, Hinata?" Tsuande asked disapprovingly. "I will need to have a word with that boy. Your body had been taking quite the beating lately. He needs to be more gentle with you."

"S-sorry to trouble you." Hintata stuttered as she looked down at her feet. Tsunade gestured to Sakura to help Hinata lay down on a mat. "At least you were able to walk here this time." Tsunade replied sourly.

"So you're Hyuga-san?" Sakura said smiling down at her. "I'm Haruno Sakura. Tsunade's apprentice."

"N-nice to meet you, Haruno-san." Hintata said giving her a shy smile back.

"Yuck. I'm so tired of all the formalities. Please call me Sakura!"

"O-okay, Sakura-san." Hinata said with a grin. "Please call me Hinata."

Tsuande proceeded to heal Hinata's wounds and Sakura held her hand through the pain, wiped sweat from her brow and the tears from her face. An hour later, Tsunade explained that Hinata had had three broken ribs which had caused internal bleeding. Sakura was amazed when Hinata stood up smoothly and didn't seem to be in anymore pain.

"How are you feeling, is there anymore severe pain?" Tsunade asked.

Hinata shook her head. "No, just a dull pain in my chest."

"That will go away in just a few hours" Tsuande explained. "For now, take it easy. No training for three days. Give yourself time to heal."

Hinata bowed and thanked Tsuande. After a tired sigh, Tsuande told Sakura she could have a break for lunch.

"Would you like to have lunch together, Hinata-san?" Sakura asked.

"Sure, Sakura-san," Hinata said with a shy smile. "There's a really good dango shop not far from here." Sakura had initially been a little unnerved by the girl's pale eyes but had quickly learned how sweet and kind she was.

"I'm so happy I met a girl my age! Tell me, are there other girls around our age, Hinata-san?"

Hinata nodded. "Yamanaka Ino-san, Tenten-san and sometimes Temari-san visits from the sand village."

On their walk to the dango shop, Sakura had learned that Yamanaka Ino had a powerful kekkei genkai that dealt with the mind, Tenten was a weapons master and Temari was a fierce opponent with her powerful fan. She also learned that Hinata also possessed a powerful kekkei genkai and one of the most powerful in the village- the byakugan.

After the girls ordered, Sakura told Hinata all about her village, the loss of her best friend, and expressed her worry of how she could ever catch up to the ninja her age in skill. Hinata had reassured her and praised her for her previous work.

"We're all working really hard too, Sakura-chan. You aren't the only one. I am nowhere near the level my cousin Neji is, but I am trying my best to train and get stronger."

Sakura finished her last few bites of her delicious meal. "Even that idiot, Naruto, seems to be pretty strong."

Hinata choked on her tea. Sakura couldn't help but notice the sudden blush that had filled the pale girl's face.

Sakura smirked a sudden devilish smirk at her. "You _like_ Naruto?"

"I-I-I-I…" Hinata started twiddling her fingers and looking at everything around her, avoiding Sakura's eyes.

Sakura was about to tease her some more, but was interrupted by an obnoxious idiot.

"SAAAAKURAAAA-CHAAANNNNN!" the loud blonde yelled loudly. "I've been looking for you! Granny said that you would be here!" He was smiling from ear to ear. When he opened his eyes, he finally noticed Hinata.

"Ahh, hello Hinata!" Naruto said casually. "How are you? One-up Neji yet?"

"Na-Naruto-k-kun" Hinata said turning even redder than she had been. "Hello."

"Naruto…" Sakura growled, "You are too loud." She pulled him down into the open seat on her left. "What did you need?"

"I wanted to ask you if you wanted to get some ramen with me tonight!" Naruto said excitedly as usual. "I leave early tomorrow morning, so I wanted to get a chance to see you before I leave." Sakura glanced at the girl sitting across from her.

"Why don't you invite Hinata-chan, too?" Naruto turned away from Sakura to look at the quiet, nervous girl across from him.

"Ahh, okay! Hinata, would you like to come get ramen with us tonight? You can invite Kiba and Shino, too!"

"O-okay." She answered quietly.

"In fact, I'll invite Shikamaru's team, too! I'll see you girls later, six o'clock at Ichiraku!" He said before bounding off to find who she guessed was this Shikamaru. Sakura sighed.

"Man that guy has a lot of energy." She stated. Hinata was quiet, but had a blissful smile on her face.

"Are you excited for tonight, Hinata-chan? Sakura asked teasingly. "I'll try and make sure you get a seat next to him! Do your best!" Hinata fainted.

After walking Hinata home to make sure she wouldn't faint again, Sakura headed back to work. Luckily that afternoon, there hadn't been any emergencies and they were able to close up shop by five. Tsuande let Sakura go early since it was Naruto's last night in the village.

Sakura quickly changed into her maroon and pink kimono, washed her face, tidied up her hair, put a dab of lip color on and ran out the door. Shizune had drawn her a map so she could get used to the layout of the village. Luckily, Ichiraku didn't seem to be too far. After a half hour of walking, she could see the bright, inviting sign of the small ramen shop and recognized the spiky head that was sitting at the stand.

Naruto waved her in. "Ah, Sakura-chan, you're the first one here!" Sakura greeted him and took the seat on his left. "How was your first day of training with granny?"

"Very interesting," Sakura said while looking through the menu. It had been a long time since her lunch, and she was starving. "I cannot wait to learn more. I couldn't believe it when Hinata-chan came in today coughing up blood and leaving an hour later almost good as new. It was amazing."

"Guess Hinata is training hard, too." Naruto said with a smile. "You know, she's much stronger than she appears. I think she'll be more powerful than Neji one day."

"T-thank you, N-Naruto-kun…" a quiet voice from behind Sakura said shyly. Sakura turned to see her new friend's bright red face.

"Ah, Hinata-chan! Glad you could come. Would you mind sitting here and saving me a seat?" Sakura plopped the girl into her seat next to Naruto. "There was a herb I saw on the way here I wanted to go take a look at. Be right back, thanks!"

"O-okay Sakura-chan." Hinata squeaked, looking stunned.

Sakura smirked as she walked away. Of course, the herb was a complete lie. She just had to come up with a reason for Hinata to have to sit next to Naruto, otherwise the shy girl probably would have sat as far away from him as possible. She just needed a friendly push. The sky was a brilliant shade of orange as Sakura wandered through a small grassy field of flowers to look for a herb to bring back with her. She decided to grab a few useful lavender flowers. The smell of this herb could help calm and relax the most anxious of patients. It could also ease pain, and when applied to cuts and bruises function as an antiseptic. It was one of the first herbs Kaede had taught her about.

As she headed back to the ramen shop, she heard two girls giggling in front of her and caught the end of their conversation.

"…Tall, dark and handsome you say?" The girl with long blonde hair asked.

"Yeah, but he was a little scary! He had this weird smile the whole time." The brunette with buns in her hair replied.

"What was he looking for at the weapons shop?"

"A new sheath for his katana. I think he was part of the Anbu."

"I can think of a better sheath for his katana…if you know what I mean." The blonde joked with a wink. Sakura blushed when she figured out what she meant.

"Ew, Ino you're a pig!" The girl Sakura now knew was Yamanaka Ino giggled. "Come on Tenten, you know you were thinking the same thing."

"No, but seriously. He was an interesting character. He was wearing all black and was very pale—"

"Ah, girls you made it!" Naruto waved them over. Sakura couldn't help but notice Hinata looked nervous but happy next to him and that many other ninja had arrived while she was away.

"Hey, Naruto," Ino said sitting next to a boy with a spikey brown ponytail. "So I hear we will finally get a break from you for a whole two years."

"It's sure going to be quiet without you!" Tenten added.

"Make fun all you want, when I get back, I will be much stronger! Dattebayo!" Naruto claimed with confidence.

"When you return, I want to fight you!" A boy with a ridiculous bowl cut challenged.

"You're on, Fuzzybrows!"

"I'll take you both on—!" A boy with a white dog exclaimed. They made quite an energetic group.

"So this must be Haruno Sakura?" The boy with the ponytail interrupted in a bored tone upon seeing her approach.

Sakura suddenly felt nervous as she saw all eyes turn to her.

"Uh, yeah. Hi, I'm Haruno Sakura." They went around introducing themselves as Ino, Tenten, Lee, Shikamaru, and Kiba.

"Did you find your herb, Sakura-chan?" Hinata asked in her quiet voice.

"Oh, yeah. Right here." Sakura said pulling out the lavender.

"So you're an herbalist?" Tenten asked.

Sakura nodded. "Yes, I'm training under Lady Tsunade to become a healer-nin."

"What did you need _lavender_ for?" Ino asked.

"A patient I had this morning suffers from severe headaches, so I thought I would offer it to her to help sooth the pain." Technically it was not a lie, she did have a patient this morning suffering from headaches.

"Ha, well, guess you'd have to be smart with a big forehead like that!" Sakura felt her eye twitch and her slight smile turn to a frown.

"What was that, pig?"

"You heard me, forehead."

"…Well, we had better start ordering!" Naruto interrupted with an awkward laugh.

After being drilled on where she came from, how training was, how she liked the village so far, and other personal questions, she was finally able to enjoy her bowl of ramen. It was as delicious as Naruto had promised. Later Ino and Shikamaru's teammate, Choji showed up and amazed Sakura with his ability to polish off ten bowls of ramen like it was nothing. Sakura also uncomfortably noticed out of the corner of her eye that the guy with the weird hair and silly clothes, Lee, kept staring at her with his big eyes.

To her astounded horror, he finally blurted out, "Sakura-chan, you are beautiful! Please be my woman!" Before Sakura could react, Tenten had Lee's neck in a choke hold between nunchucks.

"Lee, you can't just blurt something like that out!" Tenten growled. "Sorry, Sakura-chan. He is a goofball, but he's a nice enough guy." Everyone laughed. Sakura decided that although they all had their quirks, she liked them all…with the exception of Ino.

"Besides, who would want a woman with such a big forehead and no curves!" Sakura blushed furiously and folded her arms over her chest, conscious of her small frame.

"Who would want a woman with such a loud, stupid mouth!" Sakura snarled back at Ino. The girls glared daggers at each other.

"Knock it off already, Ino. Women are so troublesome." Shikamaru said annoyed before she could throw another insult. After everyone had finished their meal, Shikamaru, Ino and Choji all said goodbye to Naruto and wished him well on his journey. Ino made sure to stick her tongue out at Sakura before leaving with her teammates.

"What is her _problem_?" Sakura whispered to Hinata as she glared in the blonde girl's general direction.

"Honestly, I think she's jealous of you, Sakura-chan."

"Eh?"

"You're Lady Tsunade's apprentice. Any woman would be jealous of that alone, but you are also smart and pretty. I think she feels threatened by you."

"I don't know about that, but thank you, Hinata-chan. I'm so glad I met you." She was thankful to have met at least one nice female friend. Hinata smiled warmly at her before turning back to the group that was left.

Tenten, Lee, Kiba and Hinata all said goodbye to Naruto (Hinata had almost fainted when he gave her a hug) until it was just Naruto and Sakura left. Sakura gave Naruto a warm hug and wished him the best. She was truly sad to see him go.

"Let's see who can get stronger in two years!" she challenged him. "Shannaro!"

"You're on, Sakura-chan!" Naruto said with his signature grin. "Dattebayo!"

 **EIGHT MONTHS LATER…..**

Sasuke was surrounded. He had been foolish enough to let himself get recognized in a village rumored to be the current hideout of what was left of the Sekiko bandits.

"Damnit!" he cursed under his breath as his pursuers closed in on him from behind. He had only taken his dark cloak off for one second to shake some of the heavy snow off and in that one second, a man had recognized his face.

"It's the Uchiha!" the man called. "The boss says he will pay a fortune to the man who kills that son of a bitch!"

The dark forest was illuminated by the light of the full moon reflecting off of the bright snow.

Sasuke dodged daggers being thrown at him from his left and sliced an arrow in half coming from his right. He weaved through the trees through the heavily falling snow, the bandits hot on his trail. He was so sick of the snow because it always left a perfect trail of footprints for his pursuers to follow him. He had been running for hours and was exhausted. He stopped to quickly catch his breath as he had eluded the bandits for now. It was so cold he could see his breath swirl around him in a wisp as he gasped. His lungs were on fire from the brisk February air and he couldn't stop shivering. The shrieks of the bandits started to get near again. He had to keep going. He was almost there.

As he continued to run, his body started to feel numb and his vision started to blur. He saw the wall and used the last of his strength to get over it. He tumbled ungracefully into a snow bank behind the safe walls of Konoha village. He could hear the bandits cursing his name in the distance behind him. They weren't stupid enough to try and come into a guarded ninja village. He was finally safe, for now. Lucky for him, the weather was so bad, it masked his presence in the village.

He rose onto his shaking legs and continued to walk through the deep snow towards where he knew he would find her.

"…and that should do it!" Sakura told the parents of the sick child she had been seeing to as she handed them some medicine to help bring down the child's fever. The couple thanked her and left with their sick toddler bundled in layers and layers of blankets against his father's chest as they prepared to battle the cold.

"Stay warm!" Sakura called behind them as she waved goodbye. Her hair whipped around her face in the strong howl of the wind as she struggled to slide the door closed. It had been another long day. Sakura had been the only healer in the village for three days now. Tsunade had been called to the Village Hidden In the Mist to help with a mysterious poison and had taken Shizune with her. Since winter was mostly illnesses and not so many serious injuries, Tsunade left it to Sakura knowing she could handle it. As Sakura struggled to close the door, she saw a figure in the distance coming towards her. She squinted through the snowfall trying to make out who it was as she let the door slide back open again.

"Hello, do you need a healer?" she called. The figure was getting closer, now just thirty feet from her. She watched as the form began to sway, and drop down to their knees.

"Do you need help?" She called through the loud whistle of the wind. The figure then fell face-first into the snow.

"Shit!" Sakura exclaimed seeing the person fall, struggling to quickly shrug her wrap around her shoulders and throw her fur boots on quickly. She ran through the deep snow, stumbling as the wind pushed against her, desperate to get to the person in need. When she finally reached the unconscious body, she was disgruntled to see that it was a large man. She summoned what strength she had left and wrapped the man's large arm around her small shoulders. She pushed chakra into her arms and legs to help carry the weight of the heavy man. She dragged him through the deep snow, the sharp wind whipping her in the face and making her eyes water. After what seemed like an eternity and a lot of effort, she finally heaved him up into the warmth of the small healing hut.

She dragged him onto the mat laid out in front of the fire and collapsed at his side. She clenched her side trying to catch her breath, warmed her freezing hands over the fire and removing her wet boots before turning towards the man. From his covered face to his boots, he was covered in snow and ice. First no matter how weird or awkward, she would have to remove his wet clothes. Sakura blushed and shook away those thoughts. This was a serious matter of life or death. She started with his soaking wet boots, removing them and placing them next to the fire. She moved on to remove his heavy black cloak, starting at the neck of it, and unraveling the red scarf he had covering his face. She saw the dark hair and handsome face of a young man, she guessed to be around eighteen years old. She removed a layer of his kimono top and gasped when she recognized the familiar red and white fan symbol.

"Uchiha…Sasuke…" Sakura whispered. With shaky hands, she continued to undress his under kimono, and very reluctantly, his hakama pants. Sakura tried to focus on being professional as she looked at the very attractive man in all of his glory…and a loin cloth. She adamantly refused to remove that. She had seen naked men before and the male anatomy was nothing new to her, yet… her eyes skimmed over his chiseled abs, the muscles of his arms, his broad shoulders. She had never seen anyone quite like him before.

She quickly covered him with as many blankets as she could find and sat beside him, monitoring his shallow breathing and his temperature. Sakura determined that his body temperature had dropped too low, which had caused him to collapse. Even though he was covered in layers of blankets, she feared his body temperature was not rising fast enough and if she didn't do something quick, his body could start to shut down. She gulped, remembering what Tsunade had told her was the best way to help bring body temperature up. Direct contact with another's skin.

In her almost sixteen years of life, and nearly four years of being a healer she had never felt this nervous as she untied the back of her kimono and slid under the covers next to the Uchiha. She kept her kimono on loosely around her body and tentatively pressed her bare chest against his side. She could not believe how cold he felt and shivered as she snuggled in closer to him.

She pushed his bangs out of his face, and gazed at the man she had wondered about so much the past year. It had been months since he had made the promise of revenge for her. Had he succeeded? What was he doing here in Konoha? How had he known where to find her? It was the first time she had gotten a good look at his face. He looked surprisingly young and peaceful now, not at all how she had remembered him to look. He had seemed so cold and dangerous when they had met.

She was pleased to feel that his body temperature was progressively getting warmer the longer she stayed pressed against him. As she listened to his even breathing and the crackling of the fire, she felt herself start to get drowsy. With thoughts of when they first met, Sakura's exhaustion finally caught up with her and she drifted off to sleep, vulnerably wrapped up against the dangerous Uchiha.

Thank you, YoungBlossom for your very kind reviews! They mean a lot to me! :)

Sorry for how long this update took, life has been extremely busy lately and I had all sorts of trouble trying to upload a new chapter :(! I hope you enjoy this chapter because it was a lot of fun to write! I decided to make Ino more of an actual rival for Sakura because I want them to have to come together later on in the story to get out of trouble later on in the story. (You'll see! ;D) I also wanted to make Hinata a main character because I feel like her character, like Sasuke, was horribly neglected and underdeveloped in the Naruto series. (In fact, I couldn't stand her in the series. No offense towards Hinata fans!) What do you think?

Okay, enough of my ramblings.

Thank you for reading and please review! :)


	6. Chapter 6- Father's Tale

Ch. 6

He heard the call of a familiar voice in front of him as he collapsed. His whole body was numb. Everything was going black as he heard someone trudge through the deep snow towards him, but he was

falling,

falling,

falling…

into the darkness that consumed him.

A sudden warmth he had never thought he would feel again consumed his entire being. It reminded him of his mother. Her warm smile, the way she used to hold him, the melodic chime of her laugh. Whenever he had felt frustrated about his father pointing out his weaknesses, his mother had always reassured him of his strengths. He saw her now where he had always once found her as a child, tending to her beautiful flower garden that she had loved so much. She turned to him with a smile on her face, with her arms stretched out to him….

His eyes shot open. He was no longer in his mother's beautiful garden, but staring up at the ceiling of a dark cabin. He found himself surprisingly warm and comfortable covered in heavy blankets and was thankful considering the loud howl of wind outside. He analyzed the small room as he blinked back into reality and noticed the dying embers of a once roaring fire near his right side. On his left, he noticed shelves of potions and ointments and dried herbs hung next to the door illuminated in the morning light now cutting through the darkness. With such obvious evidence around him, he deduced that he was in a healer's home. Someone had taken him in and saved him, yet there was no one to be seen, until he had tried rolling over onto his side.

He was startled when he heard a small whine of protest from next to him. He looked down to see a mess of long pink hair sticking out of the blankets he was under. His body stiffened instantly as he pulled the blanket back to reveal the sleeping face of none other than Haruno Sakura. His eyes widened as she snuggled in closer to his side, resting her head on his left shoulder and her slender hand relaxed on his chest. His _bare_ chest he suddenly realized. He glanced down at her again and took note of her open, loose-fitted under kimono giving him a clear view of the valley of her breasts pressed against his side. He quickly covered her back up with the blanket. A blush quickly spread across his pale face. What was he going to do?

He looked around the room again, trying to focus on anything other than the girl next to him. His eyes locked onto his clothes and boots laying out in front of the fire. If he could just slowly move out from under her and put his clothes on he could get out of here before she woke up and avoid a very awkward situation. Sasuke scrunched up as many of the blankets as he could, and quickly and smoothly swapped himself out with the blankets. He sighed in relief and turned to put his clothes on when she did not wake. He was thankful to find that Sakura had not touched any of his weapons or possessions that he had had in his pockets and small bag. He even found his katana, Kusanagi, propped up against the wall. After dressing, he tied Kusanagi into the sash at his waist. Everything went smoothly until he went to grab his boots. He grabbed a boot and hissed out a chain of cusses when it jingled loudly. The damned girl had put bells in his boots.

Sakura's eyes flew open when she heard the bells. She knew he would try to leave as soon as he woke up, and she needed to make sure he was better.

"Uchiha Sasuke," Sakura said groggily as she sat up and rubbed at her eyes, "Where do you think you're going?"

She saw he was fully dressed and looked quite unpleased to have been caught trying to leave. His intense glare wavered for the slightest moment when he turned to look at her.

"Tsk, woman," Sasuke stated irritably turning his back to her, "Instead of worrying about me, you should be more concerned with your state of undress right now."

Sakura squeaked in embarrassment as she realized her kimono was wide open for him to see. "Don't look!" Sakura screeched as she quickly adjusted her garment. She was thankful that her long hair had concealed most of her.

"I would thank you for the show," Sasuke stated cooly with a smirk on his face, "If you actually had something to _look_ at. You are disappointingly lacking in sex appeal."

"It's n-not what you think!" Sakura stuttered as she blushed fiercely, "I was trying to warm you up last night! Your body temperature had dropped dangerously low! The only way to warm you up was direct contact with m-my skin!"

"Hn," Sasuke said turning towards her, dumping the bells she had placed in his boots the night before to the floor with a clatter. "I suppose I owe you my gratitude then." He wrapped his red scarf around his face and put his boots on.

"Wait, Uchiha-san," Sakura said tying her hair back into a low ponytail and standing up to face him,"You shouldn't be going anywhere yet. We have to make sure your body temperature is stable before you can go back out in the co—"

"I assure you I am perfectly fine."

"Well, at least let me check your temperature—"

"You don't need to. I am fine."

Between his stubbornness and his insult about her body, Sakura felt the vein in her temple throb as she clenched her fist and sighed before looking the headstrong man in the eye. "You stubborn man. Just let me do my job as a healer. Swallow your damn pride for one second and just let me make sure you are better!"

Taken aback by her sudden change of attitude, Sasuke scowled before yielding to her intense, green-eyed stare. "If it shuts you up, fine."

Ignoring his remark, she reached up and felt his forehead, comparing his temperature to hers and grabbed his wrist to feel for his pulse rate.

"Your pulse is still a bit slow, but that is to be expected after almost freezing to death. Your body is still trying to warm up," Sakura stated professionally, "I will bring you some tea and something to eat."

While she left the healing cabin to fetch food and tea Sasuke knew that if he really wanted to, he could leave while she was gone. However, for some strange reason, he really didn't want to face the wrath of this girl. Instead, he found himself obediently laying on a cot with blankets near the fire like she had asked him to. _It's for my health_. He repeated in his head over and over justifying his actions. _It's for my health. That's the only reason I am listening to this silly girl._

"Thank you for waiting." Sakura said as she slid the door open with a tray resting against her hip after a half an hour of her absense. He could see the sun rising behind her, illuminating her pink hair in a halo of light. He knew he would need to leave soon before patients started to come see her.

"You'll be pleased to know that the weather has really calmed down. There is almost no wind this morning. Thank goodness." He silently folded up the cot and blankets as she set the tea and nigiri she had prepared on a small table near the fire. "Still pretty cold though. Make sure to keep your feet warm and dry and cover your face whenever you can." She was now dressed in a simple red and white kimono as she removed her tan cloak and sat at the table. He joined her, sitting across from her as she poured him some tea.

"So how in the world did you end up here in the middle of a blizzard?" Sakura asked taking a sip of her tea.

"How is that any of your business?"

"Well, it's really not. I'm just curious. Why did you come here?"

Sasuke grabbed a rice ball, avoiding meeting her inquisitive gaze. "Let's just say it's not always easy to find trustworthy people in the line of work I do."

Sakura nodded in understanding. "So does that mean you consider me to be a friend?" She asked grinning at him.

Sasuke rolled his eyes at her. "No, I do not have any _friends._ Nor do I want any. Bonds make you weak."

Sakura felt her grin disappear quickly. "Really? Because I think it's just the opposite. Because I am Tsunade-Sama's apprentice, I have learned a lot and have become stronger. Because I met Naruto, I am motivated to train everyday so that I might catch up to him. Because I met you, I have hope that I will avenge Kazumi-chan. That hope lends me strength each and every day."

"Hope?" Sasuke said after sipping at his tea. "Tsk, you are so naive. You have no idea how despicable this world can be."

"You're right." Sakura whispered after a moment. "I never really had any hardships when I was living in my village. All I had to worry about then was that my parents would marry me off to an old geezer who I didn't love. Such a petty thing to worry about." Sasuke stared at her in surprise. He did not expect her to have agreed with him.

Her voice shook with emotion as she clarified, "I have seen the world differently ever since that horrible day, the first day I had ever left my village. I have come to realize that there are vile people in this world that disregard all honor and morality."

Sasuke contemplated what she had said for a moment before explaining, "I came to you because I knew you were an adequate healer and I needed the protection of this ninja village." He unconsciously spun his cup in his hands while he talked.

"I had been staying in a nearby village hiding undercover to find the last of the Sekiko bandits. I spent a month there, gathering information and learning all I could about their meeting places and members. I finally had a promising lead, only I was recognized and pursued by rouge ninja that have joined the Sekiko. They are not to be taken lightly. They are much stronger and larger in numbers that I ever would have estimated." Sakura was surprised he had told her so much. In her few encounters with him, he had been a man of few words.

"And now that I have been recognized, I cannot go back. They are sure to move quickly and I will have to start all over." Sasuke ran a hand through his raven hair and sighed, clearly frustrated.

"You'll get another lead," Sakura said optimistically, "we'll find those bastards."

"Hn." Sasuke replied with a slight smirk as he stood to leave, wrapping his cloak around him. "You are annoyingly optimistic." She followed him over to the door.

"Well, someone has got to be. Better than being so damned pessimistic and brooding all of the time. Must get exhausting, being you." she laughed.

He was captivated by her melodic laugh and alluring smile. He hoped he would see her smile like that again. He would never admit it out loud, but he thought she was beautiful. "Quite exhausting, actually," he replied in a slightly amused tone. She graced him with another small giggle.

"Be safe, Uchiha-san," Sakura scolded him pointing a finger into his chest, "And don't you dare let yourself freeze like that again!"

"Hn, don't be so noisy," Sasuke said pausing in the open door and letting the brisk air waft in. With his back to her she heard him say, "Until next time…and Sakura, thank you," before he slid the door closed behind him.

Amazed to hear him call her by her name, her _first_ name, she was lost for words and felt her cheeks grow hot. He had even thanked her.

"Until next time, Sasuke-kun." Sakura whispered to herself with a slight smile.

 **MARCH….**

It had been an extremely boring and uneventful month for Sakura. After Sasuke had left, Tsunade and Shizune had not returned for another two weeks. They had been delayed by the horrible weather. Her master had praised Sakura for her hard work and told her she had only received great compliments about her apprentice. There had only been a few ill children, the woman with the chronic headaches and one old man that had thrown out his back trying to shovel the heavy snow. She had spent most of her time organizing herbs, making ointments,brewing potions, and wondering about Sasuke. She sincerely hoped that he was not pushing himself too hard and prayed that he was safe. With the arrival of spring on it's way, Sakura had been surprised when her parents came to visit her for her had arrived a week before her birthday, and Sakura was moved to tears upon seeing them. Tsunade and Shizune were happy to give Sakura time off after her hard work over the winter and the Haruno's were very proud to hear Tsunade praise their daughter.

After a day of showing her parents Konoha, eating ramen at Ichiraku and introducing them to friends she had made in the village, they had returned to her room and were drinking tea. Her father had gone for his turn in the bath, leaving her and her mother alone.

"So Sakura, any young men catch your interest yet?" Her mother asked bluntly. Sakura choked on her tea.

"I'll take that as a yes." Her mother laughed. Sakura blushed and stuttered, "M-mom, you can't just ask me like that!"

"So who is he?" Her mother asked with a smirk. "Is it this Naruto you've been telling us all about? I wish we could have met him."

"No," Sakura said quickly waving her hand. "Don't get me wrong, he is a great guy! But a bit too much of an idiot for my taste. Besides, Hinata really likes him."

"The really quiet girl with the pale eyes?" Her mother asked. "She sure is shy."

Sakura nodded. "She is the exact opposite of Naruto. He is way too loud. I hope she gets the courage to tell him how she feels when he returns. Otherwise I will beat some sense into him!"

Her mother laughed again. "Oh, Sakura. You've always had a bit of a quick temper. Enough about Hinata's romance though, I want to hear about yours. And don't you _dare_ deny it. Your face always gives you away. It always has, even when you were little."

Sakura paused with her tea pressed to her lips deep in thought. "Mom, have you ever heard the name "Uchiha" before?"

Her mother looked surprised, "Why yes. Many times in fact from your father during the war. There were the prominent Uchiha clan samurai. They were supposedly the best of the best at the time before the samurai were outlawed." Her mother picked up Sakura's comb and began combing through her daughters long hair. "They were met with quite a dreadful fate I'm afraid though. It's rumored that only one young boy survived."

Sakura turned to her mother. "What happened?"

"Where does your interest come from, Sakura?"

"I might have met the survivor…"

Her mother didn't let her daughter's blush go unnoticed. However, she did not tease her about it because of the intensity she found in her daughter's green eyes.

Her mother paused her strokes through her hair. "Very well. It is a very sad story though." Sakura nodded, asking her mother to continue.

"I remember the day very clearly when your father returned home ten years ago. He was pale and covered in blood which I had been relieved to find was not his own. Your father did not speak to me at all that night, just walked right past you and I. You had only been five at the time. He sat out by the koi pond, deep in thought for hours—"

"I had been in shock." Her father had overheard their conversation and had come back into the room in a robe, his towel hanging over his shoulder. "Why are you talking about the Uchiha clan?"

"Father, I think I might have met the clan survivor. Uchiha Sasuke."

Her father's eyes widened at the name. "That poor boy. That poor boy who went through hell." Her father took a seat across from her mother who had finished combing Sakura's hair into a long neat braid.

"What happened to the Uchiha clan, father?" Sakura asked. "Please tell me."

Her father nodded. "We had been called to the Uchiha complex, the other samurai and I. When we arrived, it was quiet. Too damn quiet. All you could hear were the eerie echoes of crow calls in the early morning mist. There were no guards stationed at the gates like there always had been, which was unusual since the Uchiha were always so organized." Her father paused, looking past her in a trance, like he was reliving a nightmare.

"When we pushed open the gate, we were horrified. Bodies of the proud samurai that had fought at our sides time and time again in many battles lay cold and lifeless. Slaughtered in their own village. To make matters worse, we found the bodies of their women and children. None were left alive." Sakura saw her mother slip her hand into her father's, supporting him silently. "Save for one small boy. He had witnessed the slaughter of his entire clan. Every friend he'd ever had, his neighbors and his parents. All before his very eyes." Sakura felt a tear trickle down her face.

"But the worst part of it all was when the mist cleared, I saw him. Standing in the center of a circle of corpses with his sharingan red eyes and fresh blood on his katanas was Uchiha Itachi. He had single-handedly murdered his entire clan in cold blood apart from his younger brother."

Sakura felt like something kicked her in the gut. Sasuke's older brother had murdered his entire clan in front of him.

Her father continued his grim tale. "I have no idea why he spared Sasuke's life that day. And when we tried to go after Itachi, he disappeared into the mist."

Sakura felt tears falling freely down her face now. "W-what happened to Sasuke after that?"

"I wish I would have just taken him home with me and raised him as my own, but at the time I wasn't even sure if I could support your mother and you with how the economy was during the time of war. I questioned how I could have afforded another mouth to feed," Her father's face was filled with regret. "I guess the other samurai had the same doubts as me at the time."

"Instead, he was brought to an orphanage for children who lost parents in the war. I heard that he had been quite an unsociable and serious child. Always training. Always trying to be strong until one day, when he had turned thirteen, a powerful man named Orochimaru, attracted by his Uchiha name, took him under his wing to train. Orochimaru is a vile man with selfish intentions and is a wanted criminal. Over the years I have also heard horrible rumors of things Sasuke has done under his master's orders. He is also wanted in many villages for his crimes. However, I have heard recently that Sasuke has escaped that snake's coils."

Sakura took a moment to calm herself and process all that her father had told her. She was amazed to know that her father had known him when he was little and had witnessed his dark past. She wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her kimono.

"He is currently working as a bounty hunter pursuing the members of the Seiko who murdered Kazumi-chan. And I am pretty sure he plans on killing his elder brother to get revenge for his clan." Sakura deduced.

Her father's face turned red with anger. "Sakura, you stay away from that man! He is dangerous! You don't know what his true intentions are. He could still be working for Orochimaru."

"Father, I—"

" _Promise_ me, Sakura. You will not see him again and that if you do you will tell the Hokage," her father pleaded. " _Promise_ me."

Sakura looked at her father's serious face and furrowed her brows. "I'm sorry, but I cannot promise you that."

Her father opened and closed him mouth a few times, resembling one of his prize koi in their pond back at home. Sakura had never disobeyed him before in her life. Clearly frustrated, and muttering about needing a drink, her father left the room, slamming the door behind him.

"I'll go talk to him and calm him down," Her mother said standing to follow her father. "He'll be fine, but he's right you know Sakura. He does not have a good record and you don't know what his true intentions are."

Sakura nodded. "I'm sorry for angering father, but I could not lie to him. If I'm being honest, I really want to see Uchiha Sasuke again."

"Have you fallen for that man, Sakura?" her mother asked from over her shoulder paused in the doorframe. Sakura's eyes widened. Did she _love_ Sasuke? Just thinking of him made her heart flutter. She felt her face flush.

Her mother giggled. "Well, if he looks anything like most of the Uchiha did, tall, dark and brooding, I can't say I blame you." She said with a wink and slid the door closed behind her.


	7. Chapter 7-Mamushi

Ch. 7

After Sakura's mother successfully calmed her father, they both returned to the room to find their daughter meditating calmly on her futon. She explained that she was currently working on her strength of a hundred seal like Tsunade had on her forehead and told them how it took years to build up the chakra for it. Luckily, her father had dropped their earlier conversation and flopped onto his futon. She mouthed the words "thank you" to her mother as she crawled into the futon next to Sakura.

The next day was Sakura's birthday and her parents, Tsunade and Shizune surprised her with a set of ninja gear. From her parents she received a maroon and white romper with a long black obi and the Haruno symbol embroidered on the back. Tsunade gave her a pair of high quality leather gloves. From Shizune she received a large pouch to store her herbs and supplies in while she was on missions. She felt proud of herself knowing that with these gifts, she had been accepted as a ninja and was being encouraged to study and practice more.

"It's a shame the cherry blossoms didn't bloom on your birthday this year." Her father said loading the last of their luggage onto the back of the ox cart they would be riding back home. "Remember what I told you, Sakura. Stay safe." He wrapped his arm around her in an awkward one-armed hug.

"The blossoms are a little late this year, but I bet they will be exceptionally beautiful." Her mother said hugging her daughter tightly. "Take care of yourself, Sakura. We love you so much." Sakura hugged her mother tightly and felt tears form in her eyes.

"Have a safe journey. Write to me as soon as you are back so I know you made it home!" Her mother reassured her that she would, and after hugging her parents one last time, they got onto the cart and were on their way back home. Sakura waved until she could no longer see them through the entrance gate of Konoha anymore.

Sasuke had finally done it. He had finally infiltrated the Sekiko bandits and was placed among a small band of misfits. The man to his left was extremely tall with broad shouldered and tanned skin that looked like leather. His muscular arms were covered in scars and most of his face was covered in bandages that only revealed his dull, unintelligent brown eyes. The Sekiko referred to him as Yama. He was a man of very few words and was quick to become violent with his large broadsword. The man to his right was the complete opposite. He was named Shiro due to his very pale skin and shockingly white hair. He had pale blue eyes and had an expression that always made him looked anxious. Although he appeared to have a frail and small complexion, Sasuke quickly learned what he was capable of. He was extremely cunning and used his intelligence to ambush his victims with traps and ninja tools. He could not stand his shrill, high pitched laugh as he yammered on about his past victims. Sasuke had taken the role of a man named Mamushi who was a wanted man on his personal bounty list for murder. He had picked Mamushi because he also had dark hair, was around his height and build and also had skill with blades that he could easily duplicate. Sasuke had ambushed the intoxicated man as he left a brothel in the middle of the night and had skillfully slit his throat before he had had a chance to scream. He disposed of the body in a nearby forest without much thought because disturbingly enough, it was not uncommon to come across a body where the bandits were congregating.

Sasuke had swapped out his usual dark apparel for the man's straw hat, a tan traveling cloak and a mask that covered the bottom half of his face as Mamushi had typically worn. After two days of testing out his disguise, no one seemed to notice the change and fully accepted him as Mamushi. Luckily the man had been a new recruit and was not expected to know too much.

Sasuke lined up with the rest of the new recruits as they each took turns demonstrating their skills. The recruiters had been impressed with him when he had sliced the heads off of six straw dummies with his dual swords and stood with a straw head in each of his hands, his dual swords already back in the sheaths on his back before the other four straw heads had toppled to the floor.

Much to his detestation as he had hoped to be operating alone, the recruiters had assigned him with Yama and Shiro. Their task was to prove their worthiness of joining the Sekiko by completing an assigned mission. They were given the grim task of kidnapping a woman who had unique healing abilities that the boss was desperate to have and bringing her to him. Sasuke instantly recognized the woman's fiery red hair from the crude painting of her on the scroll they were given.

She was from a time of life that he did not like to think about. She had been living with Orochimaru when he was brought there and he knew firsthand of her very _unique_ healing abilities. Karin contained blood that could heal people that had saved his hide a few times. She had constantly thrown herself at him all through his teen years which he had found extremely annoying, but hadn't kept him from losing his virginity. It had not been love, but irrepressible lust. There was such raw sexuality in the way she had healed him, how when he bit her skin she would moan out in passion for him. She had even encouraged and welcomed the darkness inside of him, which had appealed to him at the time. She had repeated to him over and over that she loved him, but he had never repeated her words back to her. She did not even know who he truly was, only his appearance. He regretted it now, how he had treated her and had allowed her to pull him further into the darkness…

"So all we have to do is find this bitch and bring her to the Land of Lightning?" Shiro mused, "Tsk, they will let anyone in now, won't they."

"She resides with Orochimaru," Sasuke stated cooly heading into the forest walking past where he knew the real Mamushi's body was hidden, "Let's head south."

"Orochimaru?!" Shiro practically gasped, "As in the legendary snake sannin?"

"How do you know where his hideout is?" Yama said glaring down at him with one dark eye as he walked besides Sasuke. Shiro squinted his eyes suspiciously at him from behind Yama's broad arm.

Luckily Sasuke had already thought of an answer. "Just because you two cretins haven't worked with powerful leaders before doesn't mean that I haven't."

Shiro turned red with anger. "That's not true! Yama and I both worked alongside Zabuza of the Mist!"

"And you did a great job," Sasuke said with a slight smirk on his face, "Last I heard, he is dead." He didn't mention to them that he was part of the team that had brought their Zabuza down.

"Shut the hell up you little bastard!" Shiro screeched at him drawing a kunai which Sasuke easily disarmed him of before he even had a chance to point it at him. Yama grabbed Shiro's arms and pinned them behind his back as Shiro shouted obscenities at them.

"Shiro, we need to focus on our mission. The sooner we get it done, the sooner we can be rid of this cocky bastard."

"Or we can kill him now and leave his fucking body for the crows to feast on!"

Sasuke couldn't help but laugh grimly. "Kill me now and you will never find the woman. I'm the only one who knows where Orochimaru's hideout is."

Yama and Shiro both looked at him with pure loathing and defeat on their faces.

"South it is then." Yama said without emotion. They walked on for hours and Sasuke was thankful for the silence. Since their fight, neither Yama nor Shiro had said a word which gave Sasuke plenty of time to think. He was going to have to find a way to warn Karin and come up with a plan with her. They were close now, less than a mile away from the hideout as the shadows became longer and the sun began to set.

"I'm going to go scout ahead. Make camp." Sasuke ordered before silently running off into the dark forest.

Shiro growled in frustration. "Why are we letting this cocky son of a bitch lead?"

"Ssshhh!" Yama said squatting down in the damp earth of the forest floor.

"What?" Shiro snapped irritably.

"There is an oxen wagon coming from the south," Yama said in his deep voice. Sure enough, a moment later Shiro could hear the creaking of a wagon and the snorts of the oxen coming towards them. "They might have something of value."

Shiro grinned his unsettling grin as he pulled trip wire from his bag of tools. "Well, we will have to introduce ourselves…"

Kizashi and Mebuki Haruno sat in companionable silence as the covered ox cart made it's way through the forest road back to Shikoto village. They were sad to have to say goodbye to their one and only child again so soon.

"Our daughter is growing up so beautifully," Mebuki said as she grabbed her husband's calloused hand affectionately. "I am so proud of her."

"Yes, her talents would have been wasted in our village," Kizashi agreed. "I think we guided her down the right path. She never would have settled down and been someone's wife."

"You never know, I think one day she will settle down…in her own way." Mebuki said, smiling at her husband. "In fact, I will be surprised if she never becomes a bride."

Kizashi's eyes bulged. "You don't mean the Uch—" BANG! The carriage came to an abrupt stop, sending the couple flying. "WOAH!" They heard their driver scream to the panicking cattle.

"What's going on out there?" Kizashi yelled to their driver as he picked himself and his wife off of the carriage floor. There was no answer, only a horrible gargled scream. Mebuki cringed and her husband wrapped his left arm around her protectively as he quickly removed a knife from his bag. He slowly drew back the curtain to see the two oxen that had been pulling the cart run off into the forest.

Suddenly, the detached head of their driver dangled in front of them. Mebuki suppressed a scream of horror as her wide eyes watched the fresh blood drip from the severed head down the side of their carriage and pool at her feet. The knife in Kizashi's hand shook violently as he held it defensively. They could head someone digging through their luggage in the back of the carriage.

"We have nothing of value with us! Please just let us pass in peace!" Kizashi shouted.

It was eerily silent, the only sounds they could hear were their own labored breathing and the blood dripping onto the carriage floor.

"Nothing of value, huh?" A shrill voice asked, "Then what do we have here?"

Sasuke ran towards the hideout fully aware that Karin would recognize his chakra signature instantly. It was another unique talent she possessed thanks to Orochimaru and his human experimentation. He had removed his hat, face mask and other parts of his disguise as he waited for her near the back of the hideaway where he knew there was a hidden door. Sure enough, a minute later she was stepping out of it.

"Sasuke-kun!" She cooed obnoxiously wrapping her arms around him and pressing her body against his. "You're back, I knew you'd be back!"

"To warn you," Sasuke said pulling himself out of her grasp, "There is a group of bandits called the Sekiko that are aware of you and want you for their leader. I am currently working undercover with this group to capture you and take you to the land of lightning where their leader resides."

Karin looked up at him confused, "What do you mean? Who are you working for?"

"Myself now," Sasuke said, trying to avoid eye contact with her, "I am a bounty hunter, and my current prize is the head of the Sekiko bandits. In order to find out more about them, I have disguised myself as one of them."

"So you didn't come back here for me?" Karin asked with obvious pain in her voice.

Sasuke had his back turned to her now, "No."

"I see."

Sasuke turned back to look at her and couldn't help but notice that wherever her loose-fitting light purple kimono wasn't covering, she was now covered in bite marks. The last time he had seen her, nearly three years ago, she only had had a few marks on her right arm where she had allowed people to heal from, but she had always been able to heal her wound after helping someone. Seeing that she was forced to heal so much she couldn't heal her own wounds, he couldn't help but feel remorse for not taking her with him when he had escaped.

"If you come with us, I will make sure you are free and that you don't end up with the Sekiko," Sasuke promised, "You will be free of the snake too, and you can start your life over as I have."

He finally met her tired eyes as she nodded her agreement.

"Very well, we will be back tomorrow morning," Sasuke told her putting his hat and face mask back on, "Do not break my cover. I am _Mamushi_ , not _Sasuke_."

"Got it, Mamushi," Karin teased as her scarlet eyes scanned over his body, "You've gotten a lot manlier since the last time I saw you."

Sasuke pulled away before she could touch him. "Tch, I need to get back to my group. I told them I was scouting ahead and they will get suspicious if I am gone too long."

"Tomorrow morning then, _Mamushi._ " Karin giggled at the name and Sasuke sighed as he left her to head back to Yama and Shiro. It really was a stupid name.

As Sasuke got closer to where he had left group mates, he heard screams.

"What the _hell_ is going on?" Sasuke growled as two frantic oxen ran past him. When Sasuke came out into the clearing, he saw Shiro and Yama on top of a carriage, Yama jabbing his broad sword into the top of the carriage, making the people inside scream in fear. Shiro burst into maniacal laughter as Yama stabbed again and again and again. Sasuke felt his eyes flash red in anger but quickly suppressed his sharingan. It was a dangerous give away to his identity and it had taken him too many years to get this close to bringing down the Sekiko to give himself away right now.

"What the hell are you two idiots doing?" Sasuke said as cooly as his temper would let him. Yama and Shiro stopped what they were doing and looked up at him.

"You are late, so you don't get any of the proceeds," Shiro said looking smug, "We did all of the work." Yama and Shiro jumped down from the top of the carriage, both slinging bags of supplies that they had taken from the unfortunate people they had just robbed.

Sasuke could hear a woman whimpering in panic from inside the carriage and was disturbed to see the decapitated head hanging in the window.

"Well, maybe if you finish them off, we would be willing to share with you." Shiro said, rolling up a scroll he seemed to be very fond of, "I don't really like killing women. They're too valuable and we can't afford to bring another with us."

Sasuke nodded as the two walked away to make a camp, gleeful with their new prizes. Now what was he going to do? If he left them alive, the other two would be suspicious. Yet, how could he kill innocent people? It was against his ways now.

Sasuke decided to take a chance. "Are you okay?" He muttered to the people inside the carriage as he cut the decapitated head down. He could still hear the woman trying to suppress her sobs. The man eyed him suspiciously, and that's when Sasuke recognized him. Haruno Kizashi who had helped him as a child after his clan had been murdered. He couldn't help but to wonder if these were Sakura's parents. When the woman looked up with her unique spring-green eyes, he had no doubt that she was Sakura's mother.

"I know this isn't much, but here are a few supplies," Sasuke said, handing a skin of water, a blanket and a bag of rice to Sakura's father, "I"m sorry I cannot help more right now."

"Thank you." Kizashi said with a shaky voice.

"Good luck, Haruno-san." Sasuke said with a slight bow.

"Wait, how do you know my n—"

"Hey! What do you think you're doing- dattebayo!" His voice was a little lower than Sasuke had remembered, and he had grown taller since the last time he had seen him, but the obnoxious orange clothes were a dead give away. Sakura's blonde teammate, followed closely by his long silver-haired teacher were coming towards them. Obsidian eyes met blue.

"Ah, shit! We better scram! It's Konoha ninjas!" Shiro yelled coming into view, throwing a smoke bomb. Sasuke felt confident knowing that the Haruno's would be safe under the protection of the two ninjas, and retreated with Shiro and Yama into the smoke.

"Dammit, they got away! Those bastards!" Naruto cussed loudly.

"What's most important now is making sure these people are okay." Jiraya said seriously. "We can pursue them later."

Naruto pulled the broken carriage door open and found a middle aged couple huddled on the floor of the carriage, the woman sobbing as her husband held her.

"They are gone now, are you okay?" Naruto asked offering his hand to the woman as he helped them out of the carriage.

"Th-thank you young man, I thought for sure they were going to—" Kizashi said. He was completely in shock.

"Going to kill us." Mebuki finished for him, drying her eyes.

As Jiraya readied a fire and started cooking rice, Naruto dug a grave for the deceased driver.

"Does that boy happen to be Uzumaki Naruto?" Mebuki asked with a look of gratitude on her face as she watched the young man work. Jiraya nodded, shooting a look of pride at his young pupil. "Yes, he is my student."

"We are Haruno Sakura's parents," Mebuki said with a small smile. "Sakura talked about him a lot while we visited her. This is not quite how I hoped I would be meeting him, though." Kizashi let out a soft chuckle. "But she described him as having blonde hair, wearing orange and being…"

"Obnoxious?" Jiraya finished with a grin.

"Hard-working, kind and brave. Someone she truly looks up to and strives to be like."

"What are you talking about?" Naruto asked joining them around the fire after finishing his grim task.

"These are Sakura's parents, Naruto." Jiraya said.

"Eh?" Naruto looked from Mebuki's familiar green eyes to Kizashi's pink tinted hair. "EHHHHH?! You're Sakura-chan's parents?"

"Yes, we were just coming home from Konoha after visiting her for her birthday." Kizashi said.

"Did the bandits take anything from you?" Naruto asked.

Mebuki nodded and looked down into the flames of the fire deep in thought, " All of our supplies, money and a painting of Sakura we had done while we were in Konoha. We wanted a portrait of her for our home."

"What was strange though is there were two bandits that attacked us, a large man with a broadsword and a man that had white hair, then a third one showed up but was not violent toward us at all. He gave us supplies, apologized and somehow he knew my name," Kizashi said looking perplexed.

"That was the one that was with us when you found us." Mebuki said, "He was the one with the dark hair and eyes."

"Maybe he was a bounty hunter working undercover." Jiraya said, "Naruto and I have run into a few on our travels."

Mebuki's eyes widened when she pieced it together. Dark hair, dark eyes, knew her husband, working as a bounty hunter and hiding himself among bandits?

"Kizashi, do you think that could have been—"

"Uchiha Sasuke?" Kizashi said looking at his wife, "Yes, I think it was."

"Uchiha Sasuke?" Jiraya said leaning forward, "As in the sole survivor of the clan?" Jiraya couldn't help but think of when he witnessed the dark figured man sneak into their daughters window in Konoha a few months earlier. He eagerly pulled a scroll and ink out of his bag and started jotting down notes. "This is going to be the best novel I have ever written!"

The Haruno's looked in surprise as the man suddenly started writing what appeared to be a novel. "He gets these sudden spurts of inspiration," Naruto explained obviously annoyed, "Just ignore Pervy-Sage."

"I told you to quit calling me that!"

Mebuki couldn't help but laugh at the comical duo. She stirred the rice, seeing as Jiraya was now distracted.

Ignoring his mentor's comment, Naruto turned his attention back to the Haruno's. "You know, we will track those bandits down and get your scroll back for you-dattebayo!" Naruto said, jumping up with his fist clenched in determination.

"Naruto, I think the most important thing right now will be to see that the Haruno's make it back to their village safely," Jiraya said, continuing his writing, "Just think of Sakura's wrath if she were to find out you didn't protect her parents."

Naruto cringed as he imagined her sending him flying with one of her mighty punches. "You're right! We will escort you home safely!" Naruto said with confidence and a big smile on his face. "Then we will recover your painting!"

Jiraya rolled his eyes. Naruto. Always playing the hero.

"Thank you dear, but I would rather you stay away from them. They are dangerous." Mebuki said, touching his shoulder. "Sakura would not want you going out of your way like that. She would want you to stay safe. She cannot wait for you to come back to the village, she misses you."

Naruto blushed and scratched the back of his head. "She misses me?"

"You are her best friend," Mebuki said smiling at him as she served rice to everyone. "She told me so."

"Well, we plan on returning to the village soon!" Naruto said. "And you know what? I cannot wait to have some ramen!"

A/N: Sorry for the long gap with no update! My mother had a brain aneurism in November that requires a very long recovery time and I had to pick up a second job so life has been a bit nuts. I promise I haven't given up on this story, it might just be longer gaps between chapters. I apologize and promise to update as quickly as I can! Thank you for your patience!


	8. Fateful Meetings

Ch. 8

 _Dear Sakura,_

 _Well, we officially got to meet your friend, Naruto! Your father and I are forever grateful for his kindness. He and his master escorted us home after we were attacked by bandits (We are okay, honestly! Do not worry!) He is a very loud, but a surprisingly likable person. I understand what you meant when you described him that way, you really want to see him succeed and support him. Unfortunately, the bandits that attacked us took the painted scroll of you along with a few of our possessions. Naruto claims that he will get the scroll back, but I obviously value his life over a painting, even if it is of my beautiful daughter! The good news is Naruto told your father and I that he plans on coming back to Konoha soon!_

 _One more thing, after the bandits attacked us, a lone dark figured man that was with them told them off and gave us supplies. He also knew your father's name. Jiraya thought it might be a bounty hunter working undercover. We have a fair idea of who it might have been._

 _With much love and miss you already,_

 _Mom_

Sakura breathed a sigh of relief. It had been three and a half weeks since her parents had left Konoha, and she had finally received a letter. She had been worried sick, and for good reason according to her mother's letter. She had cried upon discovering that her parents had been attacked by bandits, out of fear for what could have been and gratitude for Naruto and Jiraya and more than likely, Sasuke. To think that her parents could have ended up like Kazumi was unbearable.

Tsunade could not help but notice that her apprentice was not acting like herself after a whole morning of mishaps. Sakura, who was usually very precise with everything she did, had ground the wrong herb, forgotten an ingredient in the remedy she was concocting and even gave a regular the wrong prescription (which Shizune had quickly corrected).

"Sakura?" Tsunade called after sharing a look of worry with Shizune.

Sakura looked up from her herbs, pushing a loose hair out of her face, "Yes, Tsunade-sama?"

"I think you should take a personal day today. You look exhausted."

"I'm fine, really," Sakura replied as she stretched out her arms above her head, "Just a bit tired."

"Sakura, you gave a man the wrong prescription," Tsunade said touching the girl's shoulder, "I really think you should take the rest of the day off and relax."

"But—"

"Shizune and I will be fine today," Tsunade ordered, "Go take a break!"

"I'm sorry, Tsunade-Sama, Shizune-san," Sakura said, "Thank you."

Sakura sighed as she left through the sliding door, thoroughly embarrassed. She had never been excused from her work before. What was _wrong_ with her today? Her hands wouldn't stop shaking. To think her parents could have ended up like… _The blood. Her torn clothes. The fly that landed on her open eye. The tear streaks that had dried on her cold face. The blood. The blood. The blood that is on my hands—_

"Hey forehead, what's your problem?" Ino snapped irritably, "Watch where you're going!" In her daze, Sakura had walked right into Ino and had sent the clothes the girl had had in her hands flying. Hinata and Tenten were with Ino, helping her carry kimonos from the shop she worked at.

"I-I'm sorry." Sakura said, bending to help clean up the beautiful kimonos.

"Hi, Sakura-chan," Hinata greeted, her arms full of expensive-looking obi, "Tenten and I are helping Ino deliver kimonos to a wedding ceremony for tomorrow."

"Do you have the day off, Sakura?" Tenten asked from behind a large stack of boxes she was holding, "That's rare."

"Yes, I guess Tsunade-Sama thought I needed a break," Sakura said standing up as she handed the last kimono she had picked up to Ino, "She let me have the rest of the day off."

"You do look rather pale, are you okay?" Hinata asked worriedly.

"Yeah," Sakura sighed fist clenched over her fast-beating heart, "I just have a lot on my mind."

"Well, I can't deliver this kimono! It has dirt on it," Ino whined, "Forehead, you're going to have to help. This is your fault after all!"

"Alright, pig," Sakura muttered, "What can I do to help?"

Taking the dirty kimono back to the shop, the girls painstakingly unpicked all of the stitching of the sleeve of the delicate kimono and Ino washed the dirt out in cold water. They waited patiently to let it dry and finally hand sewed it all together again. Once they were done, and Ino deemed their work satisfactory, they delivered the kimonos to the excited family. Sakura had to admit that even though it had been a lot of busy work, she had enjoyed spending time with the other girls. It was exactly what she had needed. For their hard work, Ino had taken them out for tea and sweets and of course the conversation was mostly about boys.

"—so it's completely obvious who you like, Hinata!" Tenten laughed, "You turn bright red whenever he's even in the same room as you!"

"Too bad he's too much of an idiot to notice," Sakura laughed thinking of her teammate, "Maybe he'll have matured in the time he's been away."

The girls were silent for a moment before they all looked at one another and burst out laughing.

"The day Naruto is mature is the day I will cut my hair," Ino teased holding up her waist length ponytail she was so proud of, "That guy is never going to grow up."

"I…I think he will mature," Hinata said, "I think he is going to come back much stronger."

Sakura smiled at her friend next to her who was turning very red, "I agree with Hinata, I think he is an idiot, but he will come back a much stronger idiot."

"I'm with Ino on this one," Tenten sighed as she took a bite of mochi, "I think he'll still be just as obnoxious as the day he left."

"I heard that he will be returning fairly soon, though," Sakura said happy to see Hinata look hopeful for the first time in months, "Apparently him and Jiraya are not too far away right now."

"No wonder I keep getting headaches," Ino joked, rubbing her temples.

"Alright enough of teasing Hinata, what about _you_ , Sakura?" Tenten smirked deviously at her, "Who do _you_ like?"

Sakura had been anticipating them asking her, but she still couldn't stop the blush that spread across her face. Even Hinata eyed her with interest.

"So forehead obviously does like someone…" Ino said leaning towards her from across the table, "Well, who is it?"

"He…he's not from Konoha. You wouldn't know him," Sakura said looking away from them.

"Is he from your home village?" Tenten asked.

"No, I actually met him while I was traveling here," Sakura said looking downcast, "I don't know if I will ever see him again."

"Well, what does he look like?" Tenten pried, "Is he tall? Handsome?"

"Well, he's…tall, with dark hair and dark eyes," Sakura said trying to picture every detail of his face, "and yes, he is very handsome."

Sakura was surprised to see Ino glaring daggers at her from across the table. "Don't even _think_ about it, forehead! Sai is mine!" Sakura choked on her tea before she started laughing.

"Sai? You think I'm talking about _Sai?_ " Sakura couldn't help but laugh. "Trust me, Ino. He is all yours!" Sai's creepy fake smiles alone were too much for her, not to mention that he referred to her as "ugly" the first time she had met him. Ino was irritatingly still glaring suspiciously at her so Sakura tried changing the subject.

"Well, I have a fair idea who you like, Tenten," Sakura smiled at her and met Hinata's eye. Tenten paled.

"Who? Who?" Ino said leaning in close, "I have been trying to get her to fess up for days!"

"You like Neji!" Hinata giggled, "I think he likes you too. He talks about you a lot with our family."

"I'm sure he talks about Lee just as much…"

"Yes, but not in the same way that he talks about you," Hinata said, "He truly respects and admires you. He thinks Lee is a little ridiculous."

"Lee _is_ ridiculous," Tenten sighed, "But he sure likes you, Sakura. He is determined to train until you agree to be his girl."

Sakura sighed. "He is a sweet guy, but I don't think—"

"Hey, so if things don't work out with this mysterious tall dark and handsome guy…there's always Lee!" Tenten said waggling her eyebrows at her.

Ino snorted with laughter and quickly covered her mouth.

Sakura couldn't help but laugh at the blond girl's mortified face. Her loud snort had made the entire restaurant turn and look at them.

"You really _are_ a pig…"

"Damn Konoha scum!" Shiro cursed loudly as they finally stopped in a small clearing to rest. The full moon was bright above them, softly illuminating the dark forest.

"How far from the hideout are we now?" Yama asked as he snapped an entire tree branch off of a tree with one hand and proceeded to set up a fire.

"About an hour's walk from here," Sasuke said flatly as he leaned back against a large tree trunk, "And I wouldn't advise starting a fire tonight."

" _Damn them_!" Shiro hissed, "Those bastards will come after us." Yama slammed the wood down in frustration.

"Relax," Sasuke said as he pulled out his dual blades to sharpen them, "Once we have the woman by tomorrow morning, we can get out of here and lose them. I know this area very well."

"Whatever you say, you little prick. You couldn't even finish them off." Shiro snapped.

"tsk, and risk fighting one of the Konoha _Sanin_?"

Shiro and Yama eyed him suspiciously. Everyone had heard of the legendary sanin. They were not to be taken lightly.

"That was Jiraya, the Toad Sage," Sasuke said sheathing his freshly sharpened weapons. "And one of his students, the son of the Fourth Hokage," Sasuke had done his research.

"How the hell do you know that?" Yama asked suspiciously in his deep voice. Shiro's eyes narrowed.

If he were to tell them the truth, as a bounty hunter, it was essential to keep up with current information and he had a network of individuals he exchanged information with. Some of them were other bounty hunters he had worked with, others were ninja, tavern owners, shop keepers, even a prostitute. He would never admit it, but once he knew that Haruno Sakura was going to be living in Konoha, he had learned as much as he could about the place and the ninja companions she had traveled with. He knew that she had traveled with not one, but two of the Konoha sanin and learned everything he could about Uzumaki Naruto.

"Because unlike you idiots, I actually prepare for my missions," Sasuke said as he jumped up onto a large tree and settled on a thick branch twenty feet above where Yama and Shiro stood, "Get some rest, I'll take first watch."

Yama, as usual, settled a fair distance away from Sasuke. He immediately slumped over onto his side on the forest floor and began counting his share of the coin they had stolen in the moonlight. A simple, greedy bastard. Shiro, on the other hand, had decided to lean against the foot of a tree not too far from where Sasuke was perched.

At first annoyed that the man had chosen a spot not far from him, he became curious when Shiro looked around the camp suspiciously, and peered up into the trees trying to see where Sasuke was. Sasuke had hidden himself well inside a wall of leaves so he could remove the bandages from his face. After not being able to spot him, Shiro shrugged and slowly pulled a scroll from his bag. He looked around the camp again, satisfied with Yama's back facing him in the distance. Sasuke sat up, squinting to see what the scroll might be. Was it classified information? Did they know his true identity? Shiro slowly opened the scroll and Sasuke could just make out a painting of a feminine figure.

Sasuke scowled in disgust and turned away. That was not something he wanted to see. He leaned his back against the tree and closed his eyes for a moment rubbing his temples.

"So your name is Sakura huh you little vixen?"

Sasuke's eyes snapped open and he leaned over to look down at the scroll again and was disturbed to see Shiro touch the face of the woman with his pale, thin fingers. He felt an overwhelming sense of dread and disgust.

"I'm going to find you." Shiro whispered, tracing the curve of her neck, "You're going to be mine."

Sasuke had to know. Silently, he leaped into the tree above Shiro and got a better view of the scroll. The moonlight revealed her red, floral kimono, her unmistakable long, pale pink hair and those unforgettable green eyes that reminded him of a spring day. _Sakura._ Sasuke felt sick to his stomach as he watched Shiro rub his grimy fingers from her breasts down to the curves of her hips.

"I wonder if you are pink down here, too my little cherry blossom," Shiro whispered as he slipped a hand into his pants and began to pleasure himself.

Sasuke felt his blood boiling with rage and knew he had activated his Sharingan due to the intense strain he felt in his eyes. Sasuke jumped as far away as he possibly dared to go from the scene he had just witnessed as wave after wave of extreme emotions washed over him. He wanted him dead. He wanted to make him suffer. He would _never_ let him have her. He would keep her safe. Fear washed over him now because he knew that once Shiro focused in on a target, he obsessed over it. He would not rest until he had found her.

"Damn it!" He growled out loud as he punch the tree he was leaning against. He watched the blood drip down his fingers from the fresh cuts on his knuckles. He took a couple of deep breaths and clenched his fists.

The only way he was able to calm himself down was to think about his mission. He could not blow his cover now. Sakura was safe in Konoha. Sasuke would be able to keep an eye on Shiro for now and turn him in to authorities or kill him before he even had a chance to look for her. Sakura is safe in a ninja village. Sakura is safe. She is safe. Safe. He took a few deep breaths and felt his eyes slowly fade back to their normal state. Finally calm, he reluctantly returned to camp and was relieved to find both men asleep.

To be safe, although Shiro usually took the second watch, Sasuke woke Yama to take his place. Yama grumbled about being woken up early but didn't question him. Finally, after a restless couple of hours, exhaustion overtook him and he fell into a deep sleep.

Sakura was extremely nervous as she waited outside of the Hokage's office next to Tsunade who was tapping her foot impatiently. She couldn't stop fiddling with her long hair, twirling it around her finger over and over again. This was the first time she was meeting the Hokage.

"There's nothing to be nervous about, Sakura, " Tsunade said grabbing her shoulder, "I could not have hoped for a better apprentice and you have grown so much this past year."

"Thank you, Tsuande-Sama." Sakura replied blushing. It was rare for her mentor to compliment her.

"I would never have recommended you if I didn't think you were ready for this."

Sakura nodded, feeling a little more confident.

"Haruno Sakura, the Hokage is ready to meet with you," A woman called barely looking up from the scroll she had her nose buried in. Sakura followed behind Tsunade as they followed the woman down a long hallway.

"This seems idiotic to be lead to my very own past office," Tsunade grumbled. Sakura often forgot that her mentor was a previous Hokage. It was not from her lack of skill, which was truly awe-inspiring, but from her lack of manners and her love of sake.

Impatient as always, Tsunade stormed past the attendant and Sakura scurried after her mentor bowing an apology to the startled woman for her master's behavior. They continued down the hall towards a set of heavy wooden double doors. Sakura, who always had very good manners, cringed as her mentor slammed the doors open.

"Dammit, Kakashi! I was waiting for over half an hour!"

The man was releasing a messenger hawk out of the window, and Sakura couldn't help but notice his spiky silver hair.

"My apologies, Tsunade-Sama," the Hokage said turning to face them. Sakura was surprised to see that he was wearing a mask and one of his eyes was covered up. His uncovered dark eye focused on her, "This must be Haruno Sakura."

Sakura bowed deeply.

Kakashi smiled, "Well, at least your apprentice has manners."

"Hmph," Tsunade grumbled.

"No need for formalities though, Sakura. You may call me Kakashi as everyone else does."

"Okay, thank you, K-Kakashi-sama," Sakura said with a slight bow.

"Just Kakashi is fine," he said taking a seat at his desk, "Now what can I do for you?"

"Kakashi, I would like permission for Sakura to enter in the Chuunin exams next month. I know she hasn't been under my tutelage for very long, but she has exceeded my expectations in every category. She is brilliant, has excellent chakra control, is a strong fighter and has become an excellent healer. I truly believe she is ready for more challenging missions."

Kakashi sat quietly for a moment, his chin resting on his folded hands at his desk, "To be seen as worthy enough for Tsunade to even take you as her student is a great accomplishment. For her to compliment your skills as she has is unheard of."

"Just last week she created an antidote for a new poison Shizune and I had never seen that saved a man's life." Sakura blushed. She hated so much attention on herself.

"Truly impressive!" Kakashi said. "She is more than welcome to participate in the exam if you deem her ready. "


End file.
